Professor John D. Simon, a former postdoctoral scholar in Professor Mostafa El-Sayed’s Group (1983-1985) has been named as the 14th president of Lehigh University.
John D. Simon, executive vice president and provost at the University of Virginia, will become Lehigh University’s 14th president on July 1, 2015, the school announced in a news release.
Simon is an internationally renowned chemist and respected leader in higher education. His appointment ends a wide-ranging search that began in January after former President Alice Gast stepped down to become president of Imperial College in London. 
John D. Simon (Courtesy: Lehigh University) “Lehigh is an exceptional university with an outstanding reputation, and I am humbled and honored to have been selected as its next president,” Simon said in a statement. “Having had the opportunity to visit Lehigh’s campus and learn more about its remarkable history and unique strengths during the search process, I have begun to understand what a truly special place this is.” Simon received his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Williams College in 1979 and his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1983. After a postdoctoral fellowship at University of California-Los Angeles [in Professor Mostafa El-Sayed’s research group], he joined the department of chemistry and biochemistry at the University of California-San Diego in 1985, then moved to Duke as the George B. Geller Professor in 1998.
