EUGENE, Ore. — The University of Oregon named John Karl Scholz, a "distinguished economist [and] professor," as the university's 19th president on Wednesday. Scholz, currently the provost at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, will begin at Oregon on July 1.
The appointment of Scholz concluded a six-month international search by a 22-member presidential search committee. He was unanimously approved by the University of Oregon Board of Trustees on Wednesday.
Scholz has served as provost at UW-Madison since 2019. Previous to that appointment, he was dean of the university's College of Letters & Science from 2013 to 2019 and director of the Institute for Research on Poverty at the university from 2000 to 2004. He joined the university's department of economics in 1998 and was named the Nellie June Gray Professor of Economic Policy.
Outside of education, Scholz has been part of two presidential administrations, serving on the Council of Economic Advisors from 1990 to 1991 under the Bush administration and then in the Treasury Department from 1997 to 1998 under the Clinton administration.
Scholz has been published in leading economic journals on topics like household saving, low-wage labor markets, financial barriers to higher education, and bankruptcy laws.
"We are thrilled and honored to welcome Karl Scholz to Oregon. He is a visionary leader with deep passion for public higher education," said Ginevra Ralph, UO Board of Trustees Chair. "He is deeply committed to the success of students, to the university’s research and liberal arts roots, and its focus on creating societal impact. Incoming President Scholz possesses all the qualities necessary to take the University of Oregon into its next ambitious era."
Scholz received an undergraduate degree from Carleton College in Minnesota and a Ph.D. from Stanford. He's married to Melissa Scholz, an attorney who specializes in nonprofit law. They have three daughters; one is currently a Ph.D. student at Oregon.
"I would like to thank the UO Board of Trustees, the members of the search committee, and everyone in the University of Oregon community for your extraordinarily warm welcome," Scholz said. "Melissa and I are excited to be Ducks, and we can't wait to join you on campus soon."
Former University of Oregon President Michael Schill announced in August 2022 he was leaving the university after seven years to become Northwestern University’s president in Illinois.
Patrick Phillips served as interim president since Schill's departure in August 2022 but the university said he'll step down as interim president and return to the school's faculty.
"We could not have asked for a better leader to step into this role for the past six months. Patrick has played a central role in the development of the UO over the last decade, especially in fostering a strategic vision of a university fully committed to its public purpose," said Board of Trustees Chair Ginevra Ralph. "We are grateful for his devotion to the University of Oregon."
The board said it expects to name Jamie Moffit, the school's Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, as interim president until Scholz arrives July 1.
