Ohio State VP Grace Wang leaves to become president of Worcester Polytechnic Institute
“Grace” Jinliu Wang – Ohio State University’s executive vice president of research, innovation and knowledge and one of President Kristina M. Johnson's cabinet members – is leaving the university to take up the presidency at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, the university announced Monday morning.
“WPI’s founding principles of theory and practice resonate strongly with me,” Wang said in a statement from Worcester Polytechnic Institute announcing her hire.
“Having consistently immersed itself in addressing the world’s grand challenges, the WPI community is already making a positive difference," she continued. "I look forward to listening and learning from the great minds who make WPI what it is and whose voices will play an essential role in defining our way forward. To lead this amazing university, one I have always held in high esteem, is an honor and privilege.”
Wang came to Ohio State in December 2020 during a reorganization of the university's research enterprises. In one of her first big moves as president, Johnson hired Wang to fill the a newly created role of executive vice president for research, innovation and knowledge enterprise.
Under Wang's leadership, Ohio State consolidated its Office of Research, Corporate Engagement and Technology Commercialization offices, the Keenan Center for Entrepreneurship and the West Campus Innovation District to create the Enterprise for Research, Innovation and Knowledge.
Wang played a pivotal role in executing Johnson's ambitious goal of doubling Ohio State's research expenditures in the next decade, including setting a record-breaking $1.236 billion in research and development expenditures during the last fiscal year and overseeing the West Campus Innovation District, now called Carmenton, emerge.
“Our momentum in advancing research excellence is only accelerating,” Johnson said in a statement Monday. “Please join me in expressing our gratitude to Grace. Her outstanding contributions — including the development of an exceptional staff and leadership team — will ensure that Ohio State’s research-and-discovery engine continues to grow.”
Ohio State was awarded eight major cross-disciplinary research centers during her tenure, totaling $122.9 million in federal funding for projects ranging from artificial intelligence to Starlab, a NASA-funded project to develop a new generation of commercial, human-occupied space stations. She also helped establish the university's partnership with Intel
Like Johnson, Wang came to Ohio State by way of the State University of New York system, where she was the senior vice chancellor for research and economic development and interim president of SUNY Polytechnic Institute. A material scientist by trade, Wang has more than 20 years of experience in research and economic development and previously worked in roles at the National Science Foundation.
Wang's last day at Ohio State will be March 1. She will assume the presidency at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, a private research university in Worcester, Massachusetts, on April 3. The university said a nationwide search to select her successor will follow.
shendrix@dispatch.com
@sheridan120
Sheridan Hendrix is a higher education reporter for The Columbus Dispatch. Sign up for her Mobile Newsroom newsletter here and Extra Credit, her education newsletter, here.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State VP Grace Wang to leave for Worcester Polytechnic Institute
