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ADDING MULTIMEDIA MIT Academic Leader Tapped As Lehigh University's Next President; Dr. Alice P. Gast Has Led Research at One of the World's Leading Research Universities Since 2001

Posted on: Tuesday, 9 May 2006, 18:04 CDT

After successfully directing research for one of the world's leading research universities for almost five years, Dr. Alice P. Gast, vice president for research and associate provost at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has been named to head one of the country's fastest rising universities.

Today she was appointed as the next president of Lehigh University, succeeding Gregory C. Farrington who last fall announced his plans to step down in June. Gast officially starts her new role as Lehigh's 13th president on Aug. 1.

Gast joined MIT in 2001 as Vice President for Research and Associate Provost and holds the Robert T. Haslam chair in chemical engineering. Previously, she was the associate chair of the Department of Chemical Engineering at Stanford University.

She is well known as an outstanding teacher and an internationally renowned scholar in the field of complex fluids and colloids. Gast's scientific findings have direct impact and applications in biotechnology, nanotechnology and advanced materials and her research has attracted support from major agencies including the National Science Foundation and NASA, as well as from several major industries.

She was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2001 and one year later was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Earlier this year she was elected to the Board of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

"I am inspired by the breadth and excellence of scholarly activities on Lehigh's campus and I am honored to serve the university as its next president," said Gast. "Lehigh's commitment to an integrated research and educational portfolio, and an excellent, balanced education for its students, is very important to me. It is clear that the culture of leadership and scholarship at the university will continue to propel it to higher levels. It will be a privilege to work with the talented and dedicated students, faculty, staff and alumni at Lehigh to face the opportunities and challenges in the years ahead."

Gast's world-renowned research accomplishments combined with her commitment to students and teaching makes her an ideal fit for Lehigh and the university's goals moving into the future, according to James Tanenbaum, chairman of Lehigh's Board of Trustees.

"We are absolutely thrilled that Alice is coming to Lehigh," Tanenbaum said. "She brings with her an impressive record of achievement and scholarly work that is unparalleled in many ways. We know that she is the kind of leader who will drive Lehigh toward an even more important place in American higher education."

Susan Hockfield, MIT's president, describes Gast an exceptionally talented academic leader and a wonderful colleague. "Her leadership on issues relating to research policy and organization, faculty governance, and intellectual property, to name a few, is more than impressive, as is her ability to bring people with different interests together around a common agenda," said Hockfield. "All of these qualities will serve her - and the university - very well as Lehigh's next president.

Stanford University President John L. Hennessy described Gast as a tremendous scholar and a star faculty member. "She is an extraordinary individual whose leadership talents have risen meteorically," said Hennessy. "Lehigh is fortunate in that she is now ready to take on a new and exciting challenge. She is a great choice for Lehigh's next president."

Charles M. Vest, former president of MIT who stepped down in 2004, said that Gast has been extremely effective in working with faculty to build interdisciplinary research teams and infrastructure. "Alice Gast will be an extraordinary university president," said Vest. "She is smart, personable, a team builder and is deeply committed to academic values and goals."

According to Robert A. Brown, president of Boston University, and former provost of MIT, Gast is a brilliant choice for president of Lehigh University. "Alice Gast is one of the most talented university leaders that I have the please to work with," said Brown. "She is dedicated to excellence and works tirelessly with faculty and students to help them reach new levels of achievement."

Gast began her academic career as a student at the University of Southern California where she distinguished herself as valedictorian of her graduating class. She went on to receive her M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Princeton University. Subsequent to receiving her Ph.D., she accepted a National Science Foundation post-doctoral fellowship at L'Ecole Superieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles, after which she formally commenced her research and teaching career as a member of the Stanford University faculty in the Department of Chemical Engineering.

At Stanford, Gast was repeatedly recognized for her outstanding research and teaching. She was the recipient of the National Science Foundation Presidential Young Investigator Award, the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Teacher Scholar Award, the National Academy of Science Award for Initiative in Research, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and the Alexander von Humboldt Award.

She inherits the reins of an institution that has a decidedly strong upward trajectory. Applications to attend Lehigh are at record levels, the school's endowment is fast approaching the $1 billion mark and its reputation academically now includes strengths in business, science, humanities and education to complement its traditional clout in engineering. "Lehigh has never been stronger than it is today," said Tanenbaum. "Alice Gast will lead Lehigh toward an even brighter future."

With more than 400 full-time faculty members and a $940 million endowment, Lehigh University is consistently ranked as one of the best private universities in the United States, providing a broad range of interdisciplinary programs that are grounded in real-world applications. Its four colleges -- College of Education, College of Arts and Sciences, College of Business and Economics and the P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science -- enroll more than 7,000 graduate and undergraduate students. Located in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, the university was founded in 1865 and is centrally situated between Washington and Boston and is less than 90 miles from both New York and Philadelphia.

Source: Business Wire

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