ALMA — Alma College has begun the search for its next president, who will assume the role following Jeff Abernathy’s departure in June 2025.
A search committee composed of representatives from the Board of Trustees, faculty, staff, alumni and students will provide guidance and structure for the search, interview and selection process.
Erika Powers Appelt, a member of the Alma College Class of 1991, leads the search committee as its chair. Currently the vice chair of the Alma College Board of Trustees, Powers Appelt has served on the board since 2013. She is a partner at Barnes & Thornburg LLP, a business law firm, where she specializes in nationwide water quality issues.
Abernathy has provided a stable foundation of guidance at Alma through periods of unprecedented growth and tumult throughout the world. His legacy includes presiding over a successful “Our Time is Now” philanthropic campaign, which raised more than $125 million. Abernathy also presided over the addition of 27 new undergraduate programs, a new core curriculum, the first graduate programs in Alma College’s history and nine new intercollegiate varsity athletics teams.
“The Vision 20/20 and Evergreen strategic plans initiated by President Abernathy were invaluable as Alma navigated the headwinds of the post-pandemic environment for higher education,” Powers Appelt said. “We are looking for a leader equipped to build on those forward-thinking visions, to ensure Alma College’s viability for the next generation. There is now, and always will be, a place in the world for the college’s mission and core values.”
The search committee expects to begin interviews by late fall and identify a final candidate or candidates in early 2025.
Visit alma.edu/presidential-search to learn more.
