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President-elect John Fry

On July 3, 2024, Temple University proudly announced the appointment of John Fry as our 15th president. President-elect Fry’s appointment was confirmed by a unanimous vote of the Board of Trustees following a comprehensive national search overseen by the Presidential Search Advisory Committee and informed by a robust community engagement process. He will officially join Temple on November 1.

A Conversation With the Search Committee

Hear from members of the Presidential Search Advisory Committee, learn more about what informed the search process and how the university community was involved.

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2024

January 2024

  • The search advisory committee shared with Temple students, faculty and staff that it had met to discuss the prospective candidates.
  • The committee communicated that next steps included narrowing down the candidate list and holding the first round of interviews.

February 2024

  • After reviewing the pool of highly qualified candidates, the committee has advanced the search to the interview stage.

March 2024

  • The advisory committee conducted several rounds of interviews.

April 2024

  • The committee unanimously narrowed the pool to a very small group of highly qualified individuals.

July 2024

  • President-elect John Fry is announced as Temple University’s 15th president.

November 2024

  • Fry officially began his tenure as president on Nov. 1.
2023

September 2023

  • Mitchell Morgan, chair of Temple’s Board of Trustees, announced the official launch of the presidential search.
  • Information about search advisory committee members was shared with the community.
  • The committee invited university stakeholders to listening sessions as well as an in-person survey, to collect feedback that informed the presidential profile.

November 2023

  • The Creative Genius compiled key insights from more than 30 hours of listening sessions as well as survey responses.
  • Details about the desired attributes we believe as a community are critical to the next president successfully leading Temple were compiled.

December 2023

  • The position specification was shared with students, faculty and staff.

Communication From the Search Committee 

Process

The presidential search was an important opportunity to determine how Temple could achieve what is planned for our future while remaining grounded in the university’s mission. The search committee prioritized engaging broadly and thoughtfully with the collective community—students, faculty, staff, alumni and neighbors—to ensure diverse perspectives informed the search process.

Temple engaged with a research and strategy firm as well as a leadership advisory firm to help guide the process. In partnership with both firms and the Temple community, the committee set the framework for a search process that emphasized the university’s core values and ideals—access, affordability, diversity, inclusivity and perseverance, among many others.