President Elizabeth Kiss
An academic procession, a symposium and a women’s ice hockey game are among the highlights surrounding the inauguration Oct. 9-11, of Elizabeth Kiss as the 20th president of Union College.
The celebration, which coincides with Homecoming and Family Weekend, kicks off 5:30 p.m. Thursday in the Nott Memorial with a symposium centered around how a Union education prepares students for a future with AI.
At 3:30 p.m. Friday, an academic procession begins across campus as faculty, trustees, and delegates from dozens of colleges and universities, and special guests proceed to Memorial Chapel.
The ceremony begins at 4 p.m. and includes remarks from faculty and student representatives, along with musical performances.
The main address will be given by Marvin Krislov, president of Pace University and a longtime friend and colleague of Kiss.
Julie Greifer Swidler ‘79, chair of the Board of Trustees, will officially install Kiss as president.
At 6:30 p.m., Kiss will be honored at the women’s hockey game between Union and the University of New Hampshire at the M&T Bank Center at Mohawk Harbor. The arena is the new home for men’s and women’s hockey. Admission is free for this game.
The celebration continues 6 p.m. Saturday with a welcome reception in the Nott Memorial featuring food and music. The weekend event wraps up with dessert at 7:45 p.m. in a tent at South Lane, followed by fireworks. Both events are free and open to the campus community.
A Rhodes Scholar and Oxford-trained philosopher, Elizabeth Kiss brings decades of leadership in liberal arts and global education to her role as Union College’s 20th president.
Kiss (pronounced quiche) assumed the presidency July 1. She took over for David Harris, who stepped down in June after seven years as president.
The daughter of Hungarian refugees who fled the country during the 1956 revolution, Kiss is a native of New York City.
From 2018 to this past January, Kiss served as CEO of the Rhodes Trust in Oxford, U.K., where she expanded the Rhodes Scholarship program across Africa and Asia and led initiatives such as the Schmidt Science Fellows and Rise, global fellowship programs aimed at developing future leaders in science and social impact.
She also spent 12 years as president of Agnes Scott College, a private women's liberal arts college outside of Atlanta.
Kiss is the first woman to lead Union in its 230-year history.