President, Wheaton College

Ronald A. Crutcher became the seventh president of Wheaton on July 1, 2004 and was inaugurated on April 16, 2005. Since coming to Wheaton, he led a strategic planning process that engaged the entire college community in charting a course for continued leadership in the liberal arts. The strategic plan, Wheaton 2014: Transforming Lives to Change the World, called for the construction of a new science facility to encourage interdisciplinary learning and research. The Mars Center for Science and Technology opened in September 2011.

A recognized leader in the field of higher education, Crutcher serves as co-chair of LEAP (Liberal Education and America’s Promise), the Association of American Colleges and Universities’ national campaign to demonstrate the value of liberal education. A past chair of the AAC&U board, he also is a member of the board of the Berklee College of Music and the Posse Foundation. He previously served on the board of the American Council on Education.

An active musician and scholar, Crutcher holds a faculty appointment at the college. He made his Carnegie Hall debut in March 1985 and has several recordings to his credit. He also is a member of the Klemperer Trio, which performs regularly in this country and in Europe. His publications include journal articles on higher education, leadership, chamber music, and black classical music.

A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Miami University, Crutcher pursued graduate studies at Yale University as a Woodrow Wilson and Ford Foundation Fellow. In 1979, he was the first cellist to receive the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Yale. The recipient of a Fulbright Award, he is fluent in German and studied music in that country.

Crutcher came to Wheaton from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where he served as provost and executive vice president for academic affairs and professor of music. In his five years at Miami, he coordinated the “First in 2009” strategic vision process for the University; established the Center for American and World Cultures; led the revamping of the first-year experience to intensify its academic rigor; and played a key role in securing a $5 million gift from an alumnus to establish a new Institute for Ethical Leadership.

Prior to Miami, he served as director of the School of Music at the University of Texas at Austin (1994-99). Earlier he was vice president of academic affairs at the Cleveland Institute of Music (1990-94) and associate vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (1987-90).

http://wheatoncollege.edu/president/contact/about-the-president/