About President Fenves
President Gregory L. Fenves joined Emory in 2020, drawn by the university’s mission to create, preserve, teach, and apply knowledge in the service of humanity.
With the One Emory strategic framework, President Fenves has introduced goals and initiatives to elevate Emory as a destination for talented students, faculty, and staff; a powerhouse for scholarship and research; a national leader in health discovery and care; and a trusted partner in the city of Atlanta. Underlying the strategy is a profound commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, a core value that President Fenves has supported throughout his four decades in higher education.
President Fenves launched 2O36, the most ambitious fundraising campaign in Emory’s history, bringing together dedicated alumni and friends to invest in the future of the university across three primary areas—student flourishing, faculty eminence, and research excellence. He has traveled throughout the nation and world, meeting with members of the Emory community to listen, learn, and inspire a new era of philanthropy and engagement.
During his time in leadership, President Fenves has also worked to expand opportunities for talented students from middle- and low-income families. In 2022, he made the decision to eliminate need-based loans for Emory’s domestic undergraduate students, replacing them with grants and scholarships to make an Emory education more accessible.
President Fenves hosts a podcast called One Big Question, which sheds light on the brilliance of innovative thinkers, creatives, and entrepreneurs connected to Emory. He is an avid reader (favorite author is Haruki Murakami) who also enjoys social media (handle is @gregfenves). He is married to Carmel Martinez Fenves, a textile artist. They have two adult daughters, two sons-in-law, and two grandchildren.
From 2015 to 2020, Fenves was president of the University of Texas (UT) at Austin, where he had previously served as provost and dean of the Cockrell School of Engineering. Prior to UT, he was an engineering professor at the University of California, Berkeley. For his groundbreaking research in earthquake engineering and academic leadership, President Fenves was elected to the National Academy of Engineering, the highest recognition for an engineer in the United States.
A Conversation with the President
Emory University President Gregory L. Fenves is a big part of the Emory community, a scholar leader as well as a friend to students, faculty, and staff members alike. In a recent interview, he shares what led him to become a university president and what during his tenure at Emory so far has made him the most proud.
