Provost Ray Jayawardhana named president of the California Institute of Technology

Johns Hopkins Provost Ray Jayawardhana has been appointed president of the California Institute of Technology, effective July 1. He has served as Johns Hopkins provost since October 2023.

Johns Hopkins University Provost Ray Jayawardhana has been appointed the next president of the California Institute of Technology. He will assume the role on July 1. JHU President Ron Daniels announced the appointment and expressed appreciation for Jayawardhana's leadership. Jayawardhana came to Johns Hopkins in October 2023 after serving in senior roles at Cornell and York University. Key details: - The appointment was announced on Jan. 6, 2026, and Jayawardhana will begin at Caltech on July 1. - He succeeds Thomas F. Rosenbaum, who has served as Caltech's ninth president since 2014. - Jayawardhana joined Johns Hopkins in October 2023 from Cornell, where he was dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and a professor of astronomy. - He has continued active research on exoplanets and on the origins of stars, planets, and brown dwarfs, and is a member of the James Webb Space Telescope NIRISS science team. - At Johns Hopkins, he helped develop faculty and student research support programs and worked on harmonizing research administration and expanding AI tools, including HopGPT. - Johns Hopkins said details on interim leadership for the Office of the Provost will be shared in the near future. Summary: Jayawardhana's move will take effect on July 1 and represents a leadership transition for both Johns Hopkins and the California Institute of Technology. Caltech's board announced a unanimous decision and highlighted his background in research and university administration. Johns Hopkins has indicated it will name interim provost leadership soon.