President Saliman Announces CU Boulder Chancellor Finalist

President Saliman announced April 2 his decision to advance Justin Schwartz as the finalist for CU Boulder Chancellor. Schwartz will be on campus today, April 4, to participate in open forums with faculty, staff and students as detailed below.

In his announcement, Saliman stated, “I believe Dr. Schwartz is the right person to build on the strong foundation already in place and to elevate CU Boulder to even greater heights. He has the skills, experience and spirit to help us continue to serve our students and state as Colorado’s flagship university. He is a leader who deeply understands the power and promise of the education, research and service that are at the heart of CU Boulder. He has a proven commitment to diversity and to supporting a community that embodies different cultures and perspectives.” Saliman also expressed his gratitude to the CU Boulder Chancellor Search Committee, chaired by Senior Vice President for External Relations and Strategy Danielle Radovich Piper, and AGB Search for their work recruiting, interviewing and advancing a diverse and highly qualified pool of candidates.

Schwartz currently serves as the executive vice president and provost at Pennsylvania State University. Previously, he was the Harold and Inge Marcus Dean of Engineering at Penn State. He earned a Ph.D. in nuclear engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a B.S. in nuclear engineering from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Before Penn State, Schwartz served on the faculty at Florida State University and as department head at North Carolina State University. He has more than 30 years of experience in higher education as a faculty member, dean and administrator.   

The search for the next chancellor of CU Boulder began in November 2023, following Chancellor Philip DiStefano’s announcement that he plans to retire after nearly 15 years in the role and 50 years on campus. DiStefano intends to return to the faculty in the School of Education, where he began his CU Boulder career in 1974.

The following open forums with Schwartz will be held in person and made available via livestream.

• Faculty: 8-9 a.m. - UMC Ballroom
• Staff: 9:15-10:15 a.m. - UMC Ballroom
• Students: 5-6 p.m. - UMC Aspen Rooms

There will be an opportunity to ask questions in person at each of the open forums and to submit questions via livestream. Survey feedback will be compiled by AGB Search and provided to Saliman for his consideration.

For more information about the CU Boulder Chancellor search, including Saliman’s full announcement, Schwartz’s curriculum vitae and more, visit cu.edu/boulder-chancellor-search.