After six months of searching, the University of Oregon has found its new president.
John Karl Scholz, an economist, professor and current provost at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, was hired by the UO Board of Trustees in a unanimous vote Monday morning.
The search began after former president Michael Schill announced his resignation in early August. Former provost Patrick Phillips took over as interim president the following month.
The Board of Trustees officially launched a presidential search in mid-September. A 22-member search committee met with at least 40 different groups of stakeholders to gather inspiration as far as the qualities the UO community wanted in a new president.
“It really has been a remarkable process,” board chair Ginevra Ralph said during Monday’s special board meeting. “The excitement is only just starting.”
Scholz was selected from among 59 applicants and 11 finalists. The university did not publicly release a list of the finalists, or provide any opportunities for the public to meet the candidates prior to Monday’s announcement.
He will be the 19th president of the university.
“I would like to thank the UO Board of Trustees, the members of the search committee, and everyone in the University of Oregon community for your extraordinarily warm welcome,” Scholz said in a news release. “Melissa and I are excited to be Ducks, and we can’t wait to join you on campus soon.”
Scholz has been with the UW–Madison Economics Department since 1988. He was selected as the provost for UW-Madison in August 2019. Scholz also served as deputy assistant secretary for tax analysis at the U.S. Treasury Department from 1997 to 1998.
Phillips will return to the UO faculty and continue to lead his biology lab, according to a news release. The board is expected to name current senior vice president and chief financial officer Jamie Moffitt interim president until Scholz takes office July 1.
Miranda Cyr reports on education for The Register-Guard. You can contact her at mcyr@registerguard.com or find her on Twitter @mirandabcyr.
