Temple University selects first Black president in its 137-year history
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By Stacy M. Brown
NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia
Temple University has selected Jason Wingard as its 12th president and the first Black person in its 137-year history to lead the school.
Wingard, 49, will lead a university with campuses and partnerships around the globe, including in Rome and Japan. The university’s main campus is in Philadelphia.
“I am honored by the board’s selection and excited to lead one of the nation’s premier urban research universities,” Wingard said in a statement released by the university.
“Temple will continue to provide its diverse and talented community of learners an unparalleled, accessible opportunity to leverage a best-in-class network of faculty and academic resources in support of dynamic and lifelong professional goals.”
Hailing from West Chester, Pa., a suburb of Philadelphia, Wingard has taught and held leadership positions at Stanford University, Columbia University, and the University of Pennsylvania.
According to Temple officials, he also served as chief learning officer of Goldman Sachs and as founder and chairman of The Education Board, Inc., a management consultancy specializing in executive coaching and corporate advisory services.
Wingard’s tenure begins on July 1. He succeeds Richard Englert at the university, which has more than 17 schools across eight campuses, 600 academic programs, 37,000 students, 8,700 faculty and staff, and 1,000 physicians.
Temple also has 340,000 living alumni.
“I look forward to the work that we will undertake together, and I believe that for all this institution has achieved over the past 137 years, Temple University’s best days are yet to come,” Wingard stated.
Wingard is a “dynamic and innovative leader who is extraordinarily qualified to lead our university in the 21st century,” Mitchell L. Morgan, chair of the Temple University Board of Trustees, said in a statement released by the university.
“Like many of Temple’s faculty, Dr. Wingard combines academic accomplishments with real-world experience. That’s been a hallmark of Temple’s education for generations,” he said.
Morgan added: “At the same time, Dr. Wingard recognizes that higher education is changing, and his unique combination of academic and business success, together with his skills in the fields of leadership development, organizational strategy, and the future of work, make him a compelling choice to lead Temple into an exciting future filled with promise and new opportunity.”
