Ursinus president stepping down
COLLEGEVILLE >> Ursinus College has announced that Brock Blomberg, president of the college since 2015, is stepping down effective Sept. 1. He will be leaving the college to take a position as the sixth president of the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco.
Wednesday’s announcement by Ursinus came shortly after the California Institute of Integral Studies said Blomberg was selected for his new position following a yearlong nationwide search.
On Wednesday, Blomberg sent an email to the Ursinus’ campus community.
“Ursinus is a wonderful community, blessed with so many talented students, faculty, staff, and alumni whose affection for one another is truly the hallmark of this institution,” Blomberg said in his email. “I consider it my greatest honor to serve as a president of a 152-yearold college that celebrates such a rich spirit of camaraderie and whose people I will always count among my closest colleagues and friends.”
The board of trustees at Ursinus has begun the process of planning for a presidential search, according to Rob Wonderling, chairman of the board of trustees at Ursinus, adding that the board “will soon share an update regarding the college’s interim leadership succession.”
During his tenure at Ursinus, Blomberg led the college through a transformative period. Guided by the Ursinus150 strategic plan, which was set upon a foundation of three pillars — learning, living together, and building lifelong connections — Blomberg championed the liberal arts. He also asked members of the Ursinus community to challenge conventional thought, according to the announcement posted on Ursinus’ website.
He also led the college during its Keep the Promise campaign, which paralleled the institution’s sesquicentennial celebration. Bloomberg also guided
“I consider it my greatest honor to serve as a president of a 152-year-old college that celebrates such a rich spirit of camaraderie and whose people I will always count among my closest colleagues and friends.”
Brock Blomberg, president, Ursinus college
the Innovation and Discovery Center to completion, as well as the development of the Schellhase Commons.
“It has been a true privilege to serve as your president. Our entire community represents the very best of Ursinus and our commitment to lifelong learning, and for that I am so very thankful,” Blomberg added.
In his message to the Ursinus community, Wonderling said Ursinus is stronger because of Blomberg’s leadership.
“Brock often referred to Ursinus as a ‘150-yearold start up,’ and his legacy certainly reflects that moniker,” Wonderling said in the statement.
He added that the appointment to the California Institute of Integral Studies is a “terrific” opportunity for Blomberg, but it means Ursinus is losing a champion of liberal arts.
“In a highly competitive applicant pool, Brock Blomberg’s commitment to mission-driven higher education, and his success in advancing equity, diversity, and inclusion at Ursinus, was especially compelling and greatly resonated with CIIS’ approach to integral education,” Brenda Sanders, California Institute of Integral Studies trustee and co-chair of the Presidential Search Committee, said in a statement announcing Blomberg’s appointment.
Blomberg had previously served as Dean of the Robert Day School of Economics and Finance at Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, Calif., where he also served as the Peter K. Barker Professor of Economics and the George R. Roberts Fellow. Earlier, Blomberg worked as faculty at Wellesley College, and was a visiting scholar at Harvard University’s Weatherhead Center for International Affairs. He is an internationally known political economist, scholar, and author, with roots in national and global economic policy.