Pratt students walking under autumn foliagePratt Institute’s presidential search is now underway, and a 16-member Presidential Search Committee (PSC) has been appointed to recommend candidates for Pratt's next president to the full Board of Trustees for approval. The Institute is undertaking the search for a successor to President Thomas F. Schutte, who announced in May that he will step down in June 2017 after more than two decades of leadership as Pratt’s 11th President.

Bruce J. Gitlin, chair of Pratt Institute’s Board of Trustees, and Mike Pratt, vice chair of Pratt Institute’s Board of Trustees, will serve as co-chairs of the search committee. The role of the PSC is to conduct an international search to identify and interview the most qualified candidates and recommend a finalist to the Board of Trustees, whose members will make the final decision on selecting the president. “In consultation with the Board of Trustees, the goal was to create a diverse committee drawing on the significant talent and experience of students, faculty, staff, and alumni,” said Gitlin.  

Throughout the coming year, the PSC will work to ensure that its process is both transparent and inclusive. A section of pratt.edu will be designed to provide regular updates on the search throughout the process. The Institute is working with Isaacson, Miller, a well-established recruiting firm known for its solid track record in working with leading colleges and universities as well as not-for-profit organizations. 

The members of the PSC are:

  • Bruce J. Gitlin, Co-Chair of the Presidential Search Committee and Chair of the Pratt Board of Trustees
  • Mike Pratt, Co-Chair of the Presidential Search Committee and Vice Chair of the Pratt Board of Trustees
  • Judith Aaron, Vice President for Enrollment
  • Kurt Andersen, Pratt Board of Trustees
  • David Cutler, Pratt Undergraduate Student Representative
  • Adriana Green, Graduate Student Trustee
  • Thomas Hanrahan, Dean of the School of Architecture
  • Anne H. Van Ingen, Pratt Board of Trustees
  • Cathleen Kenny, Vice President for Finance and Administration
  • Joan Barry McCormick, Vice President for Institutional Advancement
  • Jorge Oliver, Chair of the Department of Film and Video
  • Santiago Piedrafita (M.S. Communications Design ’94), Chair of the Department of Graduate Communications Design
  • Kirk E. Pillow, Provost
  • Dr. Joshua L. Smith, Pratt Board of Trustees
  • Chris Alen Sula, Associate Professor, School of Information
  • Ellery Washington, Associate Professor, Humanities and Media Studies and Faculty Trustee

The focused engagement and active participation of the Pratt community will be encouraged throughout the search process to help to produce a successful outcome for the critical task of identifying Pratt’s next president.

(Revised September 21, 2016)