K-College Chooses New Leader

Kalamazoo College has chosen Jorge G. Gonzalez, Ph.D., to become the school’s 18th president.

Gonzalez is currently vice president for academic affairs and dean of the college at Occidental College (Los Angeles, Calif.). He succeeds Eileen B. Wilson-Oyelaran, Ph.D., who announced her retirement in April 2015. Her last day at K will be June 30. Dr. Gonzalez will begin his new duties as K’s president on July 1.

Dr. Gonzalez grew up in Monterrey, Mexico, and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree (major in economics) from the Monterrey Institute of Technology (ITESM). During his junior year he studied abroad at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. He earned his M.A. (economics, 1986) and Ph.D. (economics, 1989) degrees from Michigan State University. He taught economics and served as an administrator at Trinity University (San Antonio, Texas), from 1989 to 2010 when he joined Occidental College.