President Stanley to Retire in 2003

Pomona’s eighth president announces plans for retirement in summer of 2003.

Peter Stanley, the eighth president of Pomona College, announced to the faculty on April 5 that he will retire at the end of the 2002-2003 academic year, stepping down at the end of a 12-year tenure.

"Dr. Stanley has had a truly remarkable presidency at Pomona College," said Stewart Smith '68, chairman of Pomona's Board of Trustees, "bringing the College to new heights of excellence and more firmly establishing it as one of the nation's premier residential liberal arts colleges. The trustees of Pomona, along with the entire college community, are thankful to Peter for his inspired leadership since 1991, and we all look forward to working with him during his remaining 15 months in office."

Stanley, who will retire at the age of 63, attributed his decision primarily to timing.

"In 2003, it will be time to begin the next phase of planning for Pomona's future, and the president who guides that planning should be in a position to carry it to fulfillment," he said.

Here are a few of the accomplishments Pomona has seen during Stanley's tenure as president:

• The College's endowment has risen to become the highest per student of any college endowment in the country.
• Several important new buildings were constructed, including the Smith Campus Center, Andrew Science Building, and the Hahn Building.
• The College's general education requirements were reorganized into the innovative Perception, Analysis and Communication (PAC) system.
• A master plan was completed and implemented, paving the way for The Campaign for Pomona College, which has raised more that $150 million over the last five years, and providing for the renovation of most buildings on campus.

Asked to comment on the College's strengths, Stanley emphasized its "deep commitment to the liberal arts and to teaching through close, personal attention to students." He also noted a new record in admissions applications this year, a 90 percent graduation rate (one of the highest in the country), and consistent ranking among the top 10 colleges and universities in the country in the proportion of graduates who go on to earn Ph.D.'s.

Stanley also singled out the remarkable quality and diversity of both the faculty and student body of Pomona today, adding that the college has also remained highly accessible. "It has remained absolutely need-blind in its admissions, even as it fully funds everyone with need," he said. "In fact, one of five students is the first person in their family to attend college."

With a Ph.D. from Harvard University, Stanley began his career in academia as an assistant professor of history at the University of Illinois. After serving on the faculty of Harvard University from 1972 to 1979, he served as Dean of the College at Carleton College in Minnesota from 1979 to 1984 and as head of the Education and Culture Program of the Ford Foundation from 1984 until he assumed the presidency of Pomona in 1991.

Following his retirement as president in 2003, Stanley will take a year's leave, granted by the Board of Trustees, "to read, write, and recover my ability to make music."

The search for the ninth president of Pomona College, according to Smith, will be a national one, including trustees and other representative members of the wider college community.

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