The University of Virginia on Thursday launched a global search for a permanent executive vice president and provost, the institution’s top academic officer.
UVA President Scott Beardsley has tapped Gregory Fairchild, the dean and CEO of , to chair a reconstituted search committee that will identify and evaluate candidates and make recommendations to the president. The full committee will be named by early August and will leverage lessons learned from a previous search.
“The provost is core to all that happens on our Grounds, in our classrooms, labs and through digital and global learning,” Beardsley said. “We are looking for a collaborative, visionary leader to guide academic and research excellence, bolster faculty distinction and awareness of their life-changing discoveries, and to build on 鶹ƽ exceptional and accessible student experience.”
Beardsley and UVA Board of Visitors Rector Carlos M. Brown paused the previous provost search in March to ensure a rigorous, transparent and stable process, and asked Brie Gertler, who has served as interim executive vice president and provost since March 2025, to remain in that role. “Beyond identifying and cultivating outstanding candidates, a key part of the committee’s mandate is to engender trust by meeting these process aspirations,” Beardsley said.
The provost oversees education, research, and student and faculty success at , plus UVA Northern Virginia, UVA Global and online education, along with libraries, art programs and museums, centers and institutes.
Reporting to the president, the provost also works closely with leaders across the University and UVA Health – especially the executive vice president and chief operating officer, and the chief executive officer of UVA Health and executive vice president for health affairs – to set the University’s priorities. Alongside launching and scaling the Paul and Diane Manning Institute of Biotechnology, the provost will significantly impact the future of patient care and life sciences at UVA.
The search for a new leader to fill the role comes at an important moment as 鶹ƽ leadership kicks off a new to chart the University’s path to the future.
The new provost will help design that future and build on the University’s considerable momentum, which is marked by record undergraduate application numbers, leading national rankings, exceptional career outcomes for graduates, a recently reaffirmed top credit rating from all three ratings agencies, outstanding fundraising momentum, and tremendous research and discovery outcomes – and continued growth despite a challenging context – across multiple academic disciplines and industry sectors.
“This is an extraordinary moment to join the University of Virginia,” Fairchild said. “We are on the precipice of shaping a bold new strategic plan, and the person who steps into this role will have a rare opportunity to help define 鶹ƽ academic future for the next generation, alongside an incredible faculty and a community deeply committed to excellence.”
Fairchild brings to his role as chair of the search committee deep experience across UVA. A 1992 alumnus of the Darden School of Business and a 25-year member of 鶹ƽ faculty, Fairchild rose through the faculty ranks to become a chaired full professor and the inaugural leader of UVA Northern Virginia in 2021. Along the way, he worked closely with four UVA provosts.
The search will be supported by UVA Executive Search Group, which will work with the committee to develop, review and evaluate an exceptional pool of internal and external candidates, with the goal of selecting a permanent provost in 2026.
The outlines the qualifications. Nominations, expressions of interest and applications may be submitted directly, and confidentially, through the .
