The provost partners closely with the president, the senior vice president for Finance and Administration and CFO, the senior vice president for Health Sciences and CEO of the VCU Health System, and other executive officers of the university in formulating the goals, priorities, and policies of the institution. They will work with deans and all campus leadership to design and implement the programs, organizational structure, and resource distribution for the institution. Direct reports to the provost include 12 campus deans, the vice president for Strategic Enrollment Management and Student Success, the vice president for Student Affairs, the senior vice provost for Academic Affairs, the senior vice provost for Faculty Affairs, the senior vice provost for Academic Administration and Operations, the vice provost for Global Initiatives, the vice provost for Innovation and Strategic Design, the associate vice provost for Institutional Research and Decision Support, the vice provost for Community Engagement, and the executive assistant to the provost.

Access the full position profile

WittKieffer consultants met (or will meet) with leadership, the Virginia Commonwealth University Search Committee, and other key constituents to get critical information for creating the leadership profile throughout April and May. Specifically, the WittKieffer consultants, led by Zach Smith and joined by Sandra Chu and Julia Bradley, met (or will meet) with the following stakeholder groups on the following dates:

• Faculty Senate - April 29, 2025
• Search Committee - April 30 and May 15, 2025
• University Council - May 1, 2025
• Council of Deans - May 13, 2025
• Staff Senate - May 15, 2025
• Cabinet - May 19, 2025
• VCU Community - May 13 and May 22, 2025

Beginning in late May/June 2025, WittKieffer will initiate a proactive, strategic, and national recruitment effort, followed by screening and conducting initial interviews with candidates. The application deadline is July 31, 2025.

In mid-July, WittKieffer will meet with the search committee again to conduct a midpoint check-in, providing an update on the search and detailing next steps in the process.

In mid-August, WittKieffer will meet with the search committee to review candidates and identify semi-finalists for interviews. Near the end of August, WittKieffer will prepare the search committee for first-round interviews and assist with selecting the finalist(s) for second-round interviews.

In mid-September, finalist interviews will be conducted on campus with a broad range of VCU constituents; educational verifications and references will be conducted by WittKieffer; and a candidate of choice will be identified from this round of interviews. 

The goal is to have a final candidate accept the offer, and the appointment announced by early October.

VCU Provost Search Timeline

• Meredith Weiss, Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration and CFO
• Marlon Levy, Senior Vice President, Health Sciences and CEO, VCU Health System
• Karen Helderman, Chief of Staff
• Grant Heston, Vice President for Enterprise Marketing and Communications
• Jay Davenport, Vice President, Development and Alumni Relations
• Amy Darragh, Dean, College of Health Professions
• Carmenita Higginbotham, Dean, School of the Arts
• Catherine Ingrassia, Dean, College of Humanities and Sciences
• KC Ogbonna, Dean, School of Pharmacy
• William Nelson, Sr. Vice Provost for Academic Admin. and Operations
• Maria Rivera, Professor of Biology, Faculty Senate President
• Jennifer Jordan, Asst. Professor, Biomedical Engineering
• Puru Jena, Distinguished Professor, Director, Inst. for Sustainable Energy and Environment
• Alex Krist, Professor of Family Medicine
• David Limbrick, Chair of Neurosurgery
• Fantasy Lozada, Associate Professor, Psychology
• Johanna Adams, Student Government Association President
• Ellen Fitzsimmons, VCU BOV, Incoming Rector
• Dale Jones, VCU BOV, Chair, Academic and Health Affairs Committee
• Asia Williams, Undergraduate Student Representative to the BOV
• Pratyush Narayan, Graduate Student Representative to the BOV

Virginia Commonwealth University: An Uncommon university

VCU is a place unlike any other. It represents distinctive excellence as evidenced through stories of a university and health system challenging preconceived notions and breaking through the sea of sameness prevalent in higher education and health care.

VCU is classified as a Carnegie Research I University and is designated a top 50 public research university by the National Science Foundation. U.S. News & World Report includes VCU in the top 20% of its list of “best global universities” and ranks many of the university’s schools and programs in the top 50 in the U.S., including fine arts, education, engineering, health sciences and social work. Located in downtown Richmond, VCU enrolls nearly 29,000 students in more than 200 degree and certificate programs in the arts, sciences and humanities, many of them crossing disciplines.  The university maintains robust divisions of student affairs as well as student enrollment management and student success to support students and enhance their VCU experience. The VCU Health brand represents the health sciences schools of VCU, the VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center and the VCU Health System, which comprises VCU Medical Center (the only academic medical center in the region), Community Memorial Hospital, Tappahannock Hospital, Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU and MCV Physicians. 

Today, VCU serves an integral role in the economic health of the city of Richmond and the region by providing the highest quality education for the current and future workforce, advancing research across a broad range of academic disciplines and enhancing the translation of research to serve the needs of the commonwealth and nation. Roughly 66% of VCU’s 229,000-plus alumni live in Virginia. The university and health system combined contribute more than $6 billion annually to the region’s economy and therefore play a significant role in regional development and community planning.