{"id":58046,"date":"2025-02-03T16:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-02-03T21:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/?p=58046"},"modified":"2025-02-03T14:01:58","modified_gmt":"2025-02-03T19:01:58","slug":"search-begins-for-emu-interim-president","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2025\/search-begins-for-emu-interim-president\/","title":{"rendered":"EMU seeks innovative interim president to lead through strategic transition"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Eastern Mennonite University&#8217;s Board of Trustees announces the search for its next interim president, seeking a dynamic leader to guide the institution beginning July 1, 2025. This strategic appointment will span a minimum of two years, reflecting a growing trend in higher education leadership transitions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>A deliberate approach to leadership transition<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;We want to balance appropriate urgency with thoughtfulness,&#8221; emphasizes Board Chair <strong>Manuel (Manny) A. Nu\u00f1ez &#8217;94<\/strong>. &#8220;This moment is as much about the next 20 years as it is the next two.\u201d This extended interim period will provide time for meaningful impact on organizational positioning and academic reimagining while ensuring consistent leadership through this important transition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The decision to pursue a longer interim presidency aligns with emerging best practices in higher education. As reported by Inside Higher Ed, more institutions are appointing interim presidents for extended terms to promote institutional continuity, implement cultural changes, and allow for thorough presidential searches, which can often take between 12 and 18 months. This approach has proven successful in attracting top-tier candidates and providing stability during transitions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Building on a strong foundation<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The interim president will succeed Dr. Susan Schultz Huxman, who is retiring after nine transformative years as EMU&#8217;s ninth president and first woman president. Under her leadership, EMU has:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Advanced its strategic direction<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Navigated the COVID-19 pandemic<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Created a more welcoming and inclusive community<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Sharpened EMU\u2019s mission, vision, and values<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Deepened the \u201ctown and gown\u201d relationship with the City of Harrisonburg<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Set records in fundraising during EMU\u2019s Centennial year (2017) and saw early success in the first-ever five-year comprehensive <em>Forward Together Campaign<\/em>\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Strengthened its Anabaptist heritage and commitment to &#8220;do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God&#8221;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>For more information about Dr. Huxman&#8217;s legacy at EMU, please visit our <a href=\"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2024\/emu-president-dr-susan-schultz-huxman-announces-retirement\/\">article about her retirement.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The search process<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The Interim Presidential Search Committee, co-chaired by Vice Chair of the Board <strong>Jane Hoober Peifer \u201875, MDiv \u201898<\/strong> and Program Director for Business &amp; Leadership <strong>Jim Leaman \u201886<\/strong>, includes diverse representation from across the university community. The committee seeks candidates who can demonstrate:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Innovative and collaborative leadership capabilities<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Commitment to EMU&#8217;s mission and values<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Experience in organizational transformation and academic leadership<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>How to apply<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Qualified candidates are invited to submit applications in confidence to president.interim@emu.edu by Monday, February 10, 2025. Applications should include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A letter of intent addressing how the candidate&#8217;s experiences match position requirements<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Current CV or resume<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>For detailed information about the position and requirements, please visit: <a href=\"http:\/\/emu.edu\/interim-president-search\"><strong>emu.edu\/interim-president-search<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>About Eastern Mennonite University<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Founded in 1917, EMU serves more than 2,000 students across three locations (Harrisonburg, Virginia; Lancaster, Pennsylvania; and Washington, D.C.) and online. As an educational institution of Mennonite Church USA, EMU offers comprehensive academic programs at the undergraduate, graduate, and seminary levels, combining rigorous study with a commitment to faith-based values and service.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Eastern Mennonite University&#8217;s Board of Trustees announces the search for its next interim president, seeking a dynamic leader to guide the institution beginning July 1, 2025. This strategic appointment will <a href=\"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2025\/search-begins-for-emu-interim-president\/\" target=\"_self\" class=\"more-link\">... read more <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">about EMU seeks innovative interim president to lead through strategic transition<\/span><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":302,"featured_media":58119,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5583,17562,5642],"tags":[5727],"feature":[17427,17426,17241,17422],"class_list":["post-58046","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-campus-community","category-digest","category-faculty-and-staff","tag-office-of-the-president","feature-emu-home-page-feature","feature-myemu-feature","feature-news-feature","feature-news-landing-page-main-feature"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>EMU seeks innovative interim president to lead through strategic transition - EMU News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2025\/search-begins-for-emu-interim-president\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"EMU seeks innovative interim president to lead through strategic transition - EMU News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Eastern Mennonite University&#8217;s Board of Trustees announces the search for its next interim president, seeking a dynamic leader to guide the institution beginning July 1, 2025. This strategic appointment will\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2025\/search-begins-for-emu-interim-president\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"EMU News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/EasternMennonite\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-02-03T21:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/emu-wordpress-multisite-instance-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2025\/01\/22163740\/20161015-Homecoming-Aerials-002-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1919\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Ryan Cornell\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@EMU_News\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@EMU_News\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Ryan Cornell\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2025\/search-begins-for-emu-interim-president\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2025\/search-begins-for-emu-interim-president\/\",\"name\":\"EMU seeks innovative interim president to lead through strategic transition - 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