Earlham’s Next President is Graduate, Board Member
Alan Price joined the Ealrham board earlier this year.
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowEarlham College has hired an alumnus and current board member to be its next president. Alan Price, who is associate director of management for the Peace Corps, will succeed David Dawson at the end of the school year.
He also currently serves as acting chief of staff for the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service in Washington D.C. Price’s previous experience also includes running a department at Harvard Business School, where he received a law degree four years after earning his bachelor’s in economics from Earlham in 1988. Price is the author of "Ready to Lead? A story for leaders and their mentors" and has worked as a consultant for Fortune 500 companies, universities and utility providers.
Earlham Board Chair Deborah Hull says "the Board of Trustees is absolutely thrilled to welcome Alan Price as Earlham’s next president. Throughout his career, Alan has proven himself as a visionary leader with a unique ability to make good organizations even better. We are looking forward to working with Alan to make Earlham stronger, more nimble and even better able to fulfill its educational mission in a rapidly changing world."
Earlham says more than 50 candidates were considered for the position and Price was "the consensus choice" of a handful of finalists. Board Member and Search Committee Chair David Stump said "Alan immediately stood out in a field of exceptionally strong candidates. During his many interviews, Alan quickly connected with students, faculty and staff. We heard from many in the campus community who felt that he is an ideal person to lead the College at this time in its history."
Price says his time at Earlham helped prepare him to lead the college. "Earlham is where I first learned the power and importance of consensus building. Earlham is where I reexamined childhood assumptions about social justice and social responsibility. Earlham is where I learned to speak truth to power – with respect." He added "I am in love with Earlham’s complicated and messy reality, scarred by many of the same human and organizational imperfections that make the larger world so fascinating" and said "it has always been my Earlham education (academic and co-curricular experiences) that brought out the best in me and truly prepared me to bring out the best in other people and organizations."
Price is the school’s 18th president and his first day on the job will be July 1. Dawson retirement takes effect June 30th.