Kalamazoo College President Jorge G. Gonzalez announced today that he will retire from his position at the end of his contract on June 30, 2026, after 10 years leading the institution.
“Serving as K’s president has been the greatest honor of my life,” Gonzalez said. “After nearly a decade, it is a job I still look forward to every day, which makes this announcement so bittersweet for me. It has been a privilege to work alongside the exceptional faculty and staff, administration and Board of Trustees to guide K’s strategic priorities and provide transformative opportunities for our students, and I intend to finish my term with the same commitment and enthusiasm I brought to my first day at K.”
“The Board of Trustees has deeply appreciated President Gonzalez’s leadership. He leads with vision, optimism, wisdom, and trust,” said Board Chair Jody Clark ’80. “He approaches problem-solving with the analytic lens of an economist and the empathy of a humanitarian. He successfully brings the College’s mission to life for students, faculty, staff and alumni. He is totally committed to the success of our students. While we would love to extend his tenure at K, his retirement is well-deserved.”
Gonzalez became the 18th president of Kalamazoo College in 2016. In his time at K, Gonzalez has overseen strategic planning efforts designed to enrich curricular and co-curricular experiences, foster an inclusive and supportive campus for all, strengthen financial and enrollment sustainability and modernize K’s historic campus.
Campus renewal projects have included replacing the aging natatorium with a new 29,600-square-foot, LEED-certified two-story facility. The natatorium, which opened in 2021, hosts the College’s athletics events and other community programming. Additional projects have included a new Admission Center, renovations to Stetson Chapel, updates to classroom spaces to improve technology and flexibility of use, significant maintenance to Dow Science Center and the replacement of electrical and thermal systems across campus. Future projects include the construction of two new residence halls, slated to start in the summer of 2025, which will increase access to on-campus residential life for K students.
A fierce champion of the liberal arts and the benefits such a comprehensive education provides, Gonzalez has worked with administration, faculty and staff to expand access to K for talented students around the nation and the world. Incoming classes during his tenure have been among the most diverse by a number of demographics, with increased growth in first-generation and Pell-eligible college students. Ensuring access to all aspects of the K-Plan, the institution’s approach to a personalized, integrated curriculum, has also been a key focus. Additionally, athletic opportunities have expanded under Gonzalez’s leadership, with improved strength and conditioning programming and, most recently, men’s and women’s track and field returning to the list of varsity sports.
In 2020 and 2021, Gonzalez guided the campus through the COVID-19 pandemic, working closely with the Board of Trustees and his administration while empowering faculty and staff to plan and make decisions. His collaborative approach helped K protect its community and support students in continuing their academic progress during an unprecedented global crisis.
In 2021, Gonzalez led the public launch of the Brighter Light Campaign, the institution’s largest fundraising campaign to date, which focused on support for student access to every facet of the K-Plan and investments in the institution’s faculty, instructional spaces, athletic programming, and other aspects of campus life. The campaign concluded in 2024 and exceeded two fundraising goals ($150 million and $190 million respectively), raising a total of $203,236,489 from more than 16,500 donors.
A 30+-year veteran in higher education, Gonzalez previously served as Occidental College’s vice president for academic affairs and dean of the college from 2010 until 2016. Prior to Occidental, Gonzalez was an economics faculty member at Trinity University for 21 years.
He earned a B.A. in economics from the Monterrey Institute of Technology in Monterrey, Mexico, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in economics from Michigan State University.
Gonzalez is the president of the Board of the F.W. and Elsie L. Heyl Science Scholarship Fund, the chair of the Board of the Great Lakes Colleges Association, the Michigan Independent Colleges and Universities, and the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association and serves on the boards of the Annapolis Group, the American Council on Education, the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, Bronson Healthcare Group, Kalamazoo Community Foundation, and the W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research. He served as the president of the International Trade and Finance Association in 2014.
The Board of Trustees will begin a national search for Kalamazoo College’s 19th president in partnership with Storbeck Search, a leading search firm in higher education and nonprofit leadership. A search committee comprised of trustees, faculty, staff, students and alumni will be chaired by Board Chair Jody Clark ’80.