As Longtime Chancellor William H. Danforth Steps Down Author: Franklin Hoke
Mark S. Wrighton, 46, became the new chancellor of Washington University in St. Louis on July 1. Wrighton, a research chemist, was provost and chief academic officer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology until his appointment. He succeeds William H. Danforth, Washington University's top officer for 24 years. The university's $1.7 billion endowment ranks it in the top 10 of United States schools; its operating budget for 1993-94 was $780 million, including $479.5 million for the medical school.
In addition to administering the university, former chancellor Danforth was a strong and frequently heard voice in national science policy and funding debates, and Wrighton also hopes to use his new position to make an effective case in Washington, D.C., and here for the mission of research universities. In particular, he sees a threat to the educational mandate of the universities ...