Astrophysicist Ray Jayawardhana, the provost at Johns Hopkins University, was named Tuesday the next president of Caltech, saying he is committed to preserving the university’s vital research functions amid federal funding cuts to such work.
He will take over the position on July 1, replacing outgoing President Thomas F. Rosenbaum, who will remain at the campus as a faculty member. Jayawardhana will be the 10th president in Caltech’s 105-year history.
“I am deeply honored to have been selected as Caltech’s tenth president and to join this remarkable community of trailblazers,” Jayawardhana said in a statement. “For more than a century, Caltech has achieved extraordinary and enduring impact from a deceptively simple formula: empowering brilliant minds to explore important questions with imagination and courage and making bold commitments to efforts others might consider too risky or far-fetched.
“My commitment is to stay true to Caltech’s North Star of fundamental research and exploration integrated deeply with education, while strengthening this community’s ability to pursue, share, and apply knowledge and innovations that serve and inspire humanity.”
Caltech and more than a dozen other universities nationwide sued the federal government last year, challenging plans to cut millions of dollars in scientific research funding. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which is operated by Caltech, has also faced steep funding cuts, leading to hundreds of layoffs.
Jayawardhana acknowledged the challenges facing major research institutions, saying “we are in a moment of inflection … that calls for Caltech’s distinct contributions and leadership.”
“The issues and opportunities confronting us demand our very best thinking and our deep engagement: pursuing discoveries vigorously and sharing our findings widely; tackling complex problems and engineering innovative solutions; welcoming debate and critique and fostering a robust exchange of ideas; and keeping a spirit of service at the heart of who we are and what we do,” he said.
Jayawardhana has been provost at Johns Hopkins since 2023. He previously led the College of Arts and Sciences at Cornell University and was a faculty member for a decade at the University of Toronto. He also was a research fellow at UC Berkeley and an assistant professor at the University of Michigan. He holds a bachelor’s degree in astronomy and physics from Yale University and a doctorate in astronomy from Harvard.
“Ray is a leader of exceptional distinction who brings a complement of qualities — as a pioneering astrophysics researcher, respected university administrator, and compelling science communicator — that together will ensure Caltech builds on its legacy of transformational research and exploration to benefit humanity,” says Caltech Board of Trustees Chair David W. Thompson said in a statement. “The board’s unanimous decision reflects our confidence in Ray’s ability to chart Caltech’s future — advancing our mission, inspiring our community, and elevating the Institute’s global impact.”