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John A. Fry Named Drexel University's 14th President

Philadelphia, PA - Drexel University's Board of Trustees named John A. Fry as the University's 14th president today after a unanimous vote, announced Chairman Richard A. Greenawalt. Fry is currently president of Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pa. and a former University of Pennsylvania executive. He will begin his tenure at Drexel on August 1.

“John Fry's entrepreneurial spirit, practical experience and strong sense of vision and leadership mirror Drexel's core values and are essential in continuing the University's upward trajectory,” said Greenawalt. “His impressive record of success at both Franklin & Marshall and the University of Pennsylvania will help seamlessly position Drexel for the future. On behalf of the Drexel Board of Trustees, students, faculty and staff, I welcome John to Drexel and extend our deepest gratitude to Chuck Pennoni for his tireless efforts in serving this great institution as interim president.”

The naming of Fry as Drexel's president comes after a nationwide search that began in July 2009. Led by the executive search firm Witt/Kieffer, the search for Drexel's new president began shortly after the death of Constantine N. Papadakis, who died unexpectedly at the age of 63 during the 14th year of his tenure as Drexel president. A search committee was formed to represent a cross-section of constituencies. The members included students, faculty, staff, alumni and trustee representatives. C.R. “Chuck” Pennoni, former chairman of the Board of Trustees and Drexel alumnus, has served as the University's interim president since Papadakis went on medical leave in April 2009. Pennoni served as interim president once before in 1994/95.

“I am thrilled to succeed Taki Papadakis, who zeroed in on Drexel's strengths and enhanced its status as a comprehensive research university,” said Fry. “I'm also grateful to my friend Chuck Pennoni for doing a masterful job guiding Drexel during the interim. Because of their leadership, Drexel is an incredible place today, and I look forward to being part of its future.

“Franklin & Marshall College has prepared me for this next chapter of my career and I am indebted to that community, especially the Chair of the Board Dale Frey, the strong and committed Board of Trustees, an exceptionally talented faculty, a dedicated staff, and the students who make all our work worthwhile. Although I am excited to return to Philadelphia, I cherish my time in and ties to Lancaster.”

Since joining Franklin & Marshall College as president in July 2002, Fry was instrumental in the college's growth, campus development and improved finances. Through his initiatives, he raised the College's national profile and brought a renewed confidence to the institution. During his tenure, the quality of the student body improved, as measured by a 63-point gain in average SATs over seven years. He dramatically improved residential life through the creation of a College House system. The student-to-faculty ratio was lowered to 10:1, with a commitment made to hire 40 new faculty members. Franklin & Marshall's curriculum was updated and expanded in life sciences, computer science, creative writing and modern languages. Faculty salaries were brought to the median of the College's competitors. Under his leadership, the College made a long-term strategic move to increase its financial aid to attract and enroll highly qualified students. Fry forged new partnerships with the city and neighbors, improving the surrounding business economic district and neighborhoods. The College ranks 43rd on U.S. News & World Report's 2010 list of liberal arts colleges. The 2009 Forbes list of “America's Best Colleges” ranked the school 36th overall and 25th among private colleges. 

Fry has served higher education since early in his professional life. He worked closely with some of the nation's premier colleges and universities, first with KPMG Peat Marwick in its educational consulting practice, and then with Coopers & Lybrand's National Higher Education Consulting Practice, where he was elected a partner in the firm and eventually rose through the ranks to become partner-in-charge of the national education practice.

Prior to his appointment to the presidency of Franklin & Marshall, Fry was a major force in developing and implementing the University of Pennsylvania's “Agenda for Excellence,” a comprehensive plan that guided Penn's strategic initiatives from 1996 to 2001. Fry joined Penn in 1995 as the university's executive vice president and chief operating officer responsible for finance, investments, human resources, facilities and real estate, public safety, computing, technology transfer, research administration, corporate relations, auxiliary enterprises and internal audit and compliance. He also served as the university's liaison to the University of Pennsylvania Health System.

At Penn, Fry built a coalition of non-profit, business, neighborhood and governmental support for a multi-pronged strategy to address the key challenges facing the University City neighborhood of West Philadelphia. In a comparatively short period of time, residential property values went up significantly, the crime rate declined dramatically, and hundreds of millions of dollars were invested in commercial infrastructure and economic development.

Fry serves on the boards of the Haverford School, Lancaster General Hospital, Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and the Lancaster County Day School, where he is President of the Board of Trustees. He is also a Director of Community Health Systems, Delaware Investments, and Ecore International.

Last year he completed his second term as chair of the NCAA Division III Presidents Council and stepped down after six years of service on the council. Fry also served for three years on the Executive Committee of the NCAA. He was appointed by former President George W. Bush to serve on the Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary Commission that planned the celebration of Benjamin Franklin's 300th birthday. Fry also served as aco-chair of the transition team of Governor-Elect Edward Rendell of Pennsylvania.

A native of Brooklyn, New York, Fry studied American Civilization at Lafayette College and received the George Wharton Pepper Prize, the highest honor awarded to a graduating senior. He was awarded an honorary degree by Lafayette College in 2008. In 1986, he earned a master's in business administration from the New York University Stern School of Business. Fry and his wife, Cara, have three children: Mia, Nathaniel and Phoebe.

As Drexel's 14th president, Fry will oversee a university that underwent transformational growth under the presidency of the late Papadakis. The arrival in 1995 of Papadakis ushered in a new era of growth and recognition for the University. Drexel currently enrolls more than 22,000 students. With an operating budget of more than $790 million and more than 8,000 employees, Drexel is Philadelphia's seventh largest private employer. The University's endowment stands at $450 million and annual research expenditures surpass $100 million. Drexel recently embarked on an ambitious $500 million master plan for its 74-acre University City Main Campus that follows a decade in which each year a building was constructed or an existing one was fully renovated while Drexel transformed from a primarily commuter to a residential campus.

In 2009, Drexel was listed for the first time among the top 100 in the category of Best National Universities in “America's Best Colleges” by U.S.News & World Report. Drexel also ranks fourth among national universities in the recently established U.S. News list of “Schools to Watch” ranking the nation's top “up-and-coming schools.”

“John Fry understands the culture, mission and ethos of Drexel,” said Pennoni. “I look forward to working with such a high-focused and energetic individual for a seamless transition of the Drexel presidency. He is the ideal candidate to build upon the University's incredible momentum and move Drexel into the top tier of the nation's comprehensive research universities.”

Always considered a leader in technology, in 1983 Drexel became the first university to require all students to have microcomputers. In 2000, Drexel became the first major university to operate a fully wireless campus. And in 2002, the University launched DrexelOne Mobile, the first wireless Web portal service for students.

On July 1, 2002, Drexel formally acquired the former MCP Hahnemann University, which it had managed since 1998. The University now includes the Drexel University College of Medicine, the College of Nursing and Health Professions, and the School of Public Health, one of just two public health schools in Pennsylvania. The creation of the Earle Mack School of Law in 2006 marked the first opening of a law school by a research university in 25 years. In January 2009, Drexel opened a Center for Graduate Studies in Sacramento, California.

Drexel's cooperative education program for undergraduates is one of the nation's oldest, largest, and most highly regarded. Drexel students alternate periods of on-campus study with full-time employment in related fields involving more than 1,300 employers in business, government, education and the arts in 27 states and 12 foreign countries. The Earle Mack School of Law is one of two law schools in the country to follow a co-operative model.

Drexel was founded in 1891 by financier and philanthropist Anthony J. Drexel, and remains a private, nonsectarian coeducational institution. The University offers 80 bachelor's, 76 master's and 32 doctoral programs, a doctor of medicine program, a juris doctor program, and 23 graduate-level certificate programs.

Source: Drexel University, Office of University Relations (March 10, 2010)

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