Presidential Search Update: Progress Toward Finding the Right Next WPI Leader

This note was shared today with students, faculty, and staff.

Dear WPI Community:

Welcome back! I hope you had an enjoyable summer, and your new academic year is off to a great start. I am writing with another update on the progress of the search and to outline the work ahead as we seek to find the right person to serve as WPI’s 17th president. 

In our updates over the summer, we wrote about the very high level of interest in the position and reported on our strong and diverse applicant pool.

The search committee has worked diligently over the past few months reviewing well over 100 candidate submissions and conducting numerous online interviews. We’ve now narrowed the pool. Our short list is composed of candidates we strongly believe have the optimal mix of skills, experiences, and personal characteristics to lead WPI as we take on the opportunities and challenges ahead.

In the coming weeks and months, the search committee—along with the recently appointed advisory group—will continue discussions with these candidates. These discussions will be framed by the position specification shared at the outset of the search and informed by our ongoing community outreach, including questions the community was invited to submit. Our goal is to recommend a final slate to the Board of Trustees in early fall.

I want to thank the search committee for the commitment and passion they have brought to every step of this process—and the broader WPI community for their ongoing support and engagement. Our work continues, and we will keep you posted.

Sincerely,

David LaPre '74

WPI Trustee and Chair, Presidential Search Committee