West Virginia University Board of Governors Chair Rick Pill joined Vice-Chair and Presidential Search Committee Chair Dr. Patrice Harris in submitting the following letter to the WVU community Monday (Feb. 24).
Dear West Virginia University Community,
We are beyond thrilled to welcome Dr. Michael T. Benson to the Mountaineer family to serve as our next University president.
After nearly a year-long national presidential search, we have the utmost confidence that we found the right person at the right time to guide us through today’s evolving higher education landscape. Dr. Benson has already embraced the Mountaineer spirit and with his history of outstanding leadership and academic excellence, he is ready to advance the University’s land-grant mission.
As the presidential search officially closes and we turn the page to begin a new West Virginia University chapter, we send our sincere appreciation and gratitude for all those who helped us uphold the integrity of the process at every phase.
First and foremost, we send a warm note of appreciation to the hundreds of faculty, staff, students, alumni, community members and West Virginia citizens who trusted in this search process and participated along the way. Your collective feedback has truly helped us select a leader who exemplifies the right qualifications, characteristics and experience to serve at the helm of West Virginia’s flagship university.
We thank each of our colleagues on the Board of Governors for their time, dedication, steadfast support and engagement throughout this process.
We also extend our sincere gratitude to each search committee member, who collectively represents our West Virginia University community. The time, energy and expertise devoted by the search committee members has led us to a successful outcome.
We extend a note of thanks to our external executive search firm, WittKieffer, who guided us through each phase of the search process, offering their expertise, vetting applications and nominations, and actively searching for the highest-quality candidates across the county.
Lastly, we would be remiss if we did not thank President E. Gordon Gee for closing out his 45-year career in academia at West Virginia University. We thank him for his commitment to our University and this state.
Now, we move forward. The future is bright. We stand at the threshold of endless possibility, and we are just getting started.
We are eager for you — our WVU community — to meet Dr. Benson and his family, to hear his vision and to explore how we can partner together in shaping the future of this incredible institution. Together, we can lead WVU into its next great adventure. And that journey begins today.
We call on our community to unite and rally together to continue to do what we do best — make a meaningful difference for our campus community, our state and our world.
Thank you once more for trusting in our presidential search process. We look forward to welcoming Dr. Benson and his family with open arms to join the WVU family.
All the best,
Rick Pill
Chair, WVU Board of Governors
Patrice Harris
Vice-Chair, WVU Board of Governors
Chair, WVU Presidential Search Committee
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rp-ph/2/24/25
MEDIA CONTACT: April Kaull
Executive Director of Communications
WVU Strategic Communications and Marketing
304-293-3990; April.Kaull@mail.wvu.edu
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