Eisgruber tapped for Provost

Christopher Eisgruber '83, a professor in the Wilson School and Center for Human Values, will be the next provost of Princeton University, University officials confirmed this morning.

President Tilghman is expected to officially announce Eisgruber's appointment in a news release around noon today.

According to multiple officials, Tilghman — who has closely guarded details of her plans — settled on her choice only late last week.

The executive committee of the Board of Trustees met on Friday to give Eisgruber, who will serve as Tilghman's chief academic and budget officer, its official stamp of approval.

He replaces Amy Gutmann, a politics professor who will become the president of the University of Pennsylvania after finishing out this academic year.

Tilghman's short list of candidates likely included six names, of which some were female but none minorities, according to a University official.

Asked whether Eisgruber's name stood out from the rest of the candidate pool from the very beginning, the official speculated that it was unlikely.

"The fortunate thing about Princeton is that we have a lot of good choices," the official said, adding that Eisgruber was in Tilghman's mind, "the best person for right now."

Eisgruber is the Laurance S. Rockefeller Professor of Public Affairs in the Wilson School and the University Center for Human Value. He is also director of the Program in Law and Public Affairs.

During the search process, there was some question as to which department the next provost would hail from, given that two of the top three University officials are scientists and that University tries to sport a diverse senior administrative body.

Tilghman and Dean of the Faculty David Dobkin, the president's third-in-command, are members of the Molecular Biology and Computer Science departments, respectively.

The official agreed with the assertion that the Eisgruber's membership in the Wilson School and the CHV made him a better candidate.

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The news of Eisgruber's appointment comes just three weeks after it was announced Gutmann would leave after 28 years at the University.

At the time of Gutmann's announcement, Tilghman said that she would "have conversations with some of her senior colleagues in the administration and members of the faculty" in order to determine whom the best candidate might be.

Lauded scholar

Eisgruber is praised by his colleagues as a gifted scholar.

Professor Maurizio Viroli described Eisgruber as "an example of immense intellectual rigor and of great ethical standards," adding that Eisgruber is "a person with impeccable integrity."

"I think he's a wonderful guy," Professor Peter Singer said, "it's going to be a loss for the CHV and LAPA."

Singer, a fellow member of the CHV, noted that the news of Eisgruber's appointment is indeed a surprise because he had no idea that Eisgruber was a candidate.

As the second-ranking officer of the University, the provost is responsible for the overall academic program and provides general oversight for many University operations. He also chairs the Priorities Committee and makes recommendations regarding the University budget to the President and the Board of Trustees.

Eisgruber's academic research focuses upon constitutional theory, religious liberty, legal philosophy, and adjudicative institutions.

While studying as an undergraduate at Princeton, Eisgruber majored in Physics. He received an M. Litt. in Politics from Oxford University, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar; and a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School.

Eisgruber was unavailable for comment this morning.