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Tuesday, February 18, 2025

Robert J. Jones Named New President Of University Of Washington

On Monday, the University of Washington (UW) Board of Regents announced the selection of Robert J. Jones as the 34th president of the UW. Jones, who currently serves as the chancellor of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, will become the first African American to serve as president of UW when he takes over the role this summer.

“I am honored to be joining the University of Washington and excited to lead this extraordinary public university,” says Jones. “In its mission serving students, families, and communities across Washington and beyond, the UW is globally renowned as a home of outstanding teaching, research, innovation, and patient care.”

“I look forward to working with the UW’s talented and dedicated faculty and staff to support and accelerate their work, and to partnering with the UW’s supporters to advance students’ success, economic opportunity, and discovery for the public good,” added Jones.

The UW presidency will be Jones’ third time at the helm of a public research university. In addition to his current role, Jones previously served as president of the University at Albany. He is a distinguished scholar, with his research focusing on crop physiology, and a leader in national academic organizations and the Big Ten Conference.

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According to UW Board of Regents Chair Blain Tamaki, Jones, who will succeed President Ana Mari Cauce—stepping down after serving 10 years in the position—was given a five-year contract, which will begin in August of 2025.

“We are very happy to welcome Chancellor Jones to the UW community and excited to accelerate the UW’s public mission of accessibility, preserving, advancing, and disseminating knowledge under his experienced leadership,” Tamaki said. “His inspiring and barrier-breaking personal journey, highly regarded scholarship, and decades of transformative leadership convinced us that Chancellor Jones is the ideal person to build upon President Ana Mari Cauce’s legacy.”

With a welcoming atmosphere, Tamaki believes Jones is the right person to lead the University of Washington into the future and welcomed him and his family to the Pacific Northwest.

“I believe he will lead us into our next chapter of providing educational excellence at scale, top-quality healthcare to all, regardless of need,” Tamaki continued. “Transformative research, and public service to the state of Washington and the world. We welcome him and his wife, Dr. Lynn Hassan Jones, to Washington and the UW.”

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Jones is the child of sharecroppers from Georgia, which he says inspired him to enter the field of agronomy. Jones earned his bachelor’s degree in agronomy from Fort Valley State College in Georgia, a master’s degree in crop physiology from the University of Georgia, and a doctorate in crop physiology from the University of Missouri. His first academic position was as an assistant professor on the Twin Cities campus at the University of Minnesota in 1978, where he received tenure in 1983 and a full professorship in 1988.

Jones’ journey in academic leadership started in 1986 when the president at the University of Minnesota charged him with creating a mentoring program for high-achieving students of color. Jones has been an accomplished associate provost, assistant vice president, and vice provost. He served as interim vice president for student development in 2000-01, and in 2004, he became senior vice president for academic administration for the University of Minnesota system.

As chancellor of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Jones prioritized providing a transformative learning experience to students, with a focus on affordability for students of modest means. This includes making education accessible and affordable through the Illinois Commitment, a program that guarantees four years of free tuition to Illinois residents with family incomes of less than $75,000. During his chancellorship, the university’s enrollment has grown, setting a record in fall 2024 with more than 59,000 students enrolled.

Jones is married to Dr. Lynn Hassan Jones, who is a musculoskeletal diagnostic radiologist, and together they have five children and a growing number of grandchildren.

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