Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor at the University of Pittsburgh Ann E. Cudd ’82 has been named president of Portland State University and will begin her new role in the 2023-2024 academic year. 

“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to lead Portland State University as its 11th president,” says Cudd, who earned degrees in both mathematics and philosophy from Swarthmore and then continued to University of Pittsburgh where she received a master's in philosophy, a master's in economics, and a doctorate in philosophy.

“Portland State’s mission to 'Let Knowledge Serve the City' and to open the doors of opportunity for students from all backgrounds aligns with my core values and with the kind of work that I have done at the University of Pittsburgh,” says Cudd. 

Since being appointed provost and senior vice chancellor at the University of Pittsburgh in 2018, Cudd has supported more than 4,600 full-time faculty members and supported student success among the University’s nearly 35,000 undergraduates on Pitt’s five campuses. Cudd was formerly dean of the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences at Boston University and vice provost and dean of undergraduate studies, as well as university distinguished professor of philosophy at the University of Kansas.

Eager to bring her leadership experience to the new position as president of Portland State University, Cudd says the opportunity holds a unique Swarthmore connection.

“I am extremely excited to take on this role leading a university located in the middle of a beautiful, progressive city that has captured my heart,” says Cudd. “It is extra special that one of my predecessors, Dr. Judith (Aitken) Ramaley ’63, a fellow Swarthmore graduate, was the transformative president for [Portland State] in the 1990's who coined its motto and now serves on the Board of Trustees.”