SU’s interim vice chancellor and provost begins work

SYRACUSE — Syracuse University’s (SU) interim vice chancellor and provost started in her new position on July 1, as did her predecessor who moved to a new role on the SU campus. Syracuse University Chancellor Kent Syverud appointed Lois Agnew to the position of interim vice chancellor and provost. Agnew has served as associate provost for academic programs since July 2023, per the school’s June 21 announcement. Agnew assumes the duties that Gretchen Ritter previously carried out. Following a three-year tenure as vice chancellor, provost, and chief academic officer, Ritter on June 18 announced she would step down from the role. Ritter is now serving as SU’s VP for civic engagement and education. It’s a “new opportunity that will allow her to leverage her areas of expertise and pursue her professional passion,” per a university announcement on June 18.

About Agnew

Syverud calls Agnew “an outstanding scholar, skilled administrator and trusted leader at Syracuse University.” “In working with Lois, I have found her to be a source of wise counsel, sound judgement and strategic leadership,” the chancellor said. “I am confident she will transition seamlessly into this new position and be an outstanding steward of the academic and research enterprise.” A member of the SU community since 2004 and professor of writing and rhetoric, Agnew has held several leadership roles throughout her tenure, the school said. Prior to her time as associate provost, Agnew served as interim dean of the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), SU’s largest academic unit. Prior to that, she was the college’s associate dean of curriculum, innovation and pedagogy, a role she was appointed to in July 2017. Other administrative positions held by Agnew include interim chair of the department of African American studies; chair of the department of writing studies, rhetoric and composition, and director of undergraduate studies for the writing program. Over the last year, Agnew has been “instrumental” in advancing several of the university’s strategic priorities, including through her work serving as a member of the academic strategic plan steering committee and as chair of the curricular thematic group.

About Ritter

Before her new role, Ritter began as provost in the fall of 2021 and focused on opportunities for SU to advance key academic priorities, the school said. “Gretchen arrived at Syracuse University in the midst of a global pandemic and made an immediate impact on our academic and research enterprise,” Syverud said. “Among her most significant achievements, Syracuse University now has a new academic strategic plan and has already begun implementing its ambitious priorities. Gretchen’s contributions as the University’s chief academic officer will be felt for many years to come, and I look forward to her continued impact in this new role.” Under Ritter’s leadership, Syracuse recruited and hired academic deans to lead five schools and colleges, as well as faculty scholars, including hiring two of the largest faculty cohorts in the school’s history. SU also collaborated across academic disciplines, schools and colleges to create “Leading with Distinction,” an academic strategic plan created by faculty, staff and students. It also “responded to, prepared for and navigated the challenges” created by the Supreme Court ruling eliminating race-based admissions, per the announcement. Syracuse University also launched several centers and institutes designed to tackle complex national and global issues, including the Institute for Democracy, Journalism and Citizenship and the Center for Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing. Ritter, an expert in the history of women’s constitutional rights and contemporary issues concerning democracy and citizenship in American politics, joined SU after serving as executive dean and vice provost for the Ohio State University College of Arts and Sciences. Prior to her time at Ohio State, Ritter served as the Harold Tanner Dean of Cornell University’s College of Arts and Sciences, SU