“I am deeply honored to be appointed the 16th president of Colgate,” Herbst said in statement.
“The university exemplifies the very best in a liberal arts university at a time when our society is searching for answers that only this type of learning experience can provide.”
Herbst will continue at Miami through the spring 2010 semester.
A search for a new provost will begin immediately, with a committee chaired by Carine Feyten, dean of Education, Health and Society, according to Miami officials.
Herbst has served for five years as provost and executive vice president for academic affairs at Miami. Colgate officials praised Herbst’s efforts to promote internationalization at Miami by broadening the curriculum and expanding opportunities for study abroad. They also lauded his direction in leading efforts to increase access for students of limited means, promoting integrity on campus and expanding the university’s outreach efforts in the community.
“Jeffrey Herbst stood out among the other candidates not only for his high academic achievements, administrative positions held and successes, and understanding of leadership in the 21st century, but more so for his vision for Colgate University as a leading institution in a globalized 21st century,” said John Palmer, associate professor of educational studies at Colgate. “When he spoke of his vision, I was both intrigued by his depth of understanding of globalization and international as it relates to Colgate University and energized to follow him in his efforts to bring the world to Colgate.”
Colgate also pointed to the success Herbst, who was previously on faculty at Princeton University, had in strengthening Miami’s long-standing commitment to undergraduate teaching and the liberal arts core and his work in helping design the Miami Access Initiative, a program that provides all tuition and fees for students from families of limited means
They also noted his work with Miami’s admission office to attract an unprecedented number of African-American applicants, raise the number of students from multicultural backgrounds and increase the number of international students on campus several fold.
“Jeff is a person with deep personal values and a great appreciation of a liberal education and an excellent understanding of the changing nature of higher education,” Miami President David said in the news release. “He will be a tireless advocate for the university and its alumni, deeply engaged with everyone connected to Colgate. I wish him and Colgate University the very best.”