Ajay Nair, a graduate of Marple Newtown High School who grew up in Broomall, has been hired as the new president of Arcadia University, writes Susan Snyder for the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Nair is currently a senior vice president and dean of campus life at Emory University in Georgia. He previously worked at Penn, Columbia, and the University of Virginia. He earned his degrees from Penn State.

Nair will be the first president of color in the Glenside-based university’s 164-year history, and is among few American-born college presidents of Indian descent in the nation.

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“It’s a blessing to return home to the Philadelphia area to lead an institution with the potential to transform delivery of a liberal arts education to produce work-ready and life-ready students,” said Nair, 43. “I look forward to working with our stakeholders to build a compelling vision for Arcadia that creates best practices in higher education.”

One of Nair’s jobs at Arcadia will be to bring stability to leadership ranks that have experienced upheaval in recent years. Nair will take the helm at Arcadia, a 76-acre campus with about 3,800 undergraduate and graduate students, in April.

Click here to read more about Ajay Nair in the Philadelphia Inquirer.