Christopher Roberts, current dean of the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering, has been named the 21st president of Auburn University, effective May 16. He will replace Jay Gogue, who has announced he will retire in June.
Roberts’ selection follows a national search that included campus community input.
Auburn Trustee Wayne Smith, who chaired the 22-member presidential advisory search committee, said, “We all have every confidence that he is the right person to provide strong and thoughtful leadership that will enhance Auburn’s visibility and impact for the 21st century.”
Roberts earned his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Missouri and master’s and doctoral degrees in chemical engineering from the University of Notre Dame. He began his career at Auburn in 1994 as an assistant professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering and became department chair in 2003. He was named dean of engineering in 2012.
“Having called Auburn home for the past 28 years, I feel privileged to lead this distinguished university as we pursue even greater levels of impact and excellence,” said Roberts.
Gogue, who earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree in horticulture from Auburn, returned to his alma mater in 2007 as the university’s 18th president and retired as president emeritus in 2017. He was appointed by the university’s board of trustees to serve as interim president in 2019 and appointed as the university’s 20th president in 2020.
“President Gogue has served our great university incredibly well, twice,” said President Pro Tempore Bob Dumas. “We will be forever grateful to Jay and Susie for coming out of retirement when called upon three years ago. Jay expertly led us through many challenging times these past couple of years and leaves the university well positioned for our next president.”
