Emory is proceeding with the process of selecting the next president of the university after President James Wagner announced last month that he would step down at the end of August 2016.

"One of the most important responsibilities of the Emory Board of Trustees is that of appointing a president and to assure the success of the new president," says John Morgan, board chair. "The selection of the president is a task we have been approaching seriously and deliberately during the past several weeks. Our goal is to design and conduct a selection process characterized by integrity, validation, ownership, and clarity."

Following the president’s announcement in September, Morgan, with the support of the Board of Trustees Executive Committee, appointed a small group of trustees to serve as an Advisory Committee on the Presidential Selection Process and charged them with designing the selection process that will be considered and approved by the full board.

Members of the advisory committee include the following:

• Laura J. Hardman: Elected to the Emory Board of Trustees in 1983, Hardman serves as secretary of the board and the chair of the Board of Trustees Campus Life Committee. Hardman is a 1967 graduate of Emory College. Active in a number of civic organizations, she serves on the boards of organizations for the arts, health care, and education.

• Jonathan K. Layne: An Emory trustee since 2009 and chair of the Board of Trustees Executive Compensation and Trustees’ Conflict of Interest Committee, Layne earned a joint JD/MBA from Emory School of Law and Goizueta Business School in 1979. He is a partner of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and is located in its Century City office in Los Angeles and has extensive experience in board of directors, special board committee, and corporate governance representations.

• Teresa M. Rivero: Elected as an alumni trustee in 2007 and currently chair-elect of the Board of Trustees Campus Life Committee, Rivero serves as senior program officer for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. She graduated from Emory's Oxford College in 1985, completed her BBA at Goizueta Business School in 1987, and earned an MPH from Rollins School of Public Health in 1993.

The Advisory Committee is being assisted by Peter Barnes, vice president for human resources, and Allison Dykes, vice president and secretary of the university.

Presidential Selection Committee, website to come

The Advisory Committee also has been charged with supporting the development of the Presidential Selection Committee, which will conduct the selection process.

The Board of Trustees is expected to announce the members of the selection committee in November, Morgan says. At the same time, the committee will launch a comprehensive website that will serve as the hub for information related to the search and selection process. The website also will offer an opportunity for the Emory community to provide direct input about the credentials, experience, qualities, and values the selection committee should consider for the university's next president.

"Clear and consistent communication is key during an undertaking of this magnitude, and the engagement of our faculty, students, and staff in this process is vital," Morgan says, pledging that the trustees will share information and updates with the Emory community at key milestones in the selection process.

Questions about the presidential selection process may be submitted to PresidentSearch@emory.edu.