Penn State board selects UofL’s Bendapudi as new president

Hire is first woman, first person of color to lead Penn State

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — The Penn State trustees on Thursday named the University of Louisville’s president Neeli Bendapudi (click to watch) to succeed Eric Barron as the school’s top administrator,

The board vote to hire Bendapudi makes her the first woman and first person of color to serve as the school’s president.

Bendapudi is a marketing professor whose research involves consumer behavior. She became Louisville’s president three years ago.

Barron is retiring in June. He came to Penn State from Florida State University in 2014 while fallout from Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal was still a major problem for campus leaders in State College.

“Being president of this institution is a sacred trust, and it’s truly the honor of a lifetime. I am in awe of Penn State’s ‘we are’ spirit and of the transformative power of a Penn State education,” she told the board after the vote at a State College hotel and conference center. “And the Penn State community, which is like no other, anywhere.”

Bendapudi was hired as University of Louisville’s president in 2018 to lead the school beyond a series of scandals and has received positive reviews for her job performance there. A predecessor at Louisville had been criticized for lucrative compensation and there had been problems with mismanagement as well as excessive spending and flawed investments by the school’s investment arm.

“While I will miss having my close friend Neeli Bendapudi at the University of Louisville, I am so grateful for her leadership and lasting impact on Kentucky higher education. She brought to us keen insights and knowledge and an unwavering commitment to high-quality learning and true equity. Penn State University is fortunate to have her, and I wish her the very best in this next chapter of her life and distinguished career,” said Dr. Aaron Thompson, president of the Kentucky Council of Postsecondary Education.

In a message to the University of Louisville community released moments before the announcement was officially made by Penn State University, Bendapudi announced she has accepted the new position and stated her decision to embark on her new chapter was not an easy one.

“Leaders of great institutions are simply temporary stewards called to take great care of the mission and the people and to leave them better than they found them. Together, we have accomplished much, advancing the University of Louisville on several fronts. The academic profile of our incoming students has never been stronger; our research funding never higher; our Foundation never more stable; our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion never more robust; our facility transformations never more noticeable; our new brand and online presence never more impactful; our UofL Health system never better staffed, funded and appreciated; our work to improve our community, the Commonwealth and the world never more evident. And we have done it all during an unprecedented worldwide pandemic and through the painful tragedies of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd,” Bendapudi wrote. “I have complete confidence this important work will continue and that the University of Louisville will rise to greater heights.”

On Thursday, Kentucky Chamber President and CEO Ashli Watts released a statement:

“The Chamber thanks Dr. Bendapudi for her service to the Commonwealth and for forging strong ties between the University of Louisville and Kentucky’s business community. Personally, as a UofL grad, I have appreciated my friendship with Neeli and wish her nothing but success in her next endeavor.”

The Penn State Board of Trustees votes unanimously to hire Bendapudi as new president to start on or before July 1, 2022.