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Interim Provost and Search Process

April 28, 2025

Dear LMU Community, 

As we begin a new chapter together, I extend my sincere gratitude for the kindness, warmth, and support I’ve received from the university community over the past few weeks. I step into the role of LMU’s 17th president with immense pride and appreciation. I am honored to serve this extraordinary institution and look forward to dedicating myself fully to LMU’s mission as we embark on this journey.

Amidst the transition, I’m delighted to share that I’ve appointed Kathleen Weaver, Ph.D., as the interim executive vice president and provost, effective June 1, 2025, while we conduct a nationwide search for our next provost.  Dr. Weaver currently serves as the vice provost of faculty, research, and strategy and will maintain these responsibilities as she leads us through exciting developments in the Provost’s Office. 

Since joining LMU in 2018, Dr. Weaver has led significant achievements in strategic innovation, institutional improvement, and faculty, staff, and student support, always prioritizing interdepartmental collaboration. Dr. Weaver has built a robust infrastructure for statistical analysis, grant writing, and proposal submission, resulting in a 78% increase in extramural research funding, a tripling in the number of faculty members securing external funding, and several prestigious awards for LMU. Responding to faculty’s desire for holistic growth and attending to the Ignatian principle of cura personalis, Dr. Weaver established the Center for Faculty Development (formerly the Center for Teaching Excellence) while deepening the faculty’s commitment to our Jesuit and Marymount heritage in partnership with Mission and Ministry. Through the Office of Research and Creative Arts, she has also overseen increased support for student research, including the implementation of a new Research Learning Community program, which prepares students for independent and faculty-mentored research, as well as the expansion of summer and academic year support. Her service as co-chair of the BeHSI task force has also situated LMU well in service of student success for all. A proven champion of LMU faculty, students, and staff, I am confident in Dr. Weaver’s steadfast and visionary leadership during this interim period. 

To ensure a thoughtful and inclusive search for LMU’s next executive vice president and provost, I have convened a search committee co-chaired by Rosemarie Rae, executive vice president and chief operating officer, and Mairead Sullivan, Ph.D., professor and chair of Women’s and Gender studies, who have generously agreed to lead the committee’s efforts. They will be joined by the dedicated colleagues and outstanding teacher-scholars listed below. I am grateful to our colleagues for their willingness to invest their time and insights into this critical process that will help shape LMU’s future. 

With great enthusiasm for what lies ahead, LMU is poised to move forward with boldness and unity. I am honored to partner with Dr. Weaver, co-chairs Rosemarie Rae and Mairead Sullivan, and our esteemed search committee as we guide the university through this transition. Information regarding listening sessions with the campus community is forthcoming. I am confident that we will identify an outstanding executive vice president and provost who will elevate our commitment to educational excellence, inclusion, and service while advancing the Catholic, Jesuit, and Marymount values that differentiate our transformative academic and co-curricular student experience. 

 

Sincerely, 

Thomas Poon, Ph.D.  

Executive Vice President and Provost
President-Elect
Professor of Chemistry



Executive Vice President and Provost Search Committee

  • Rosemarie Rae (co-chair), Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer
  • Mairead Sullivan, Ph.D., (co-chair), Professor and Department Chair of Women’s and Gender Studies, Director-elect of the University Core Curriculum, LMU Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts
  • Joe Bernardo, Ph.D., Director of DEI Capacity Building Programs and Initiatives
  • Myla Bui, Ph.D., Professor of Marketing, LMU College of Business Administration, Faculty Senator
  • Brietta Clark, J.D., Fritz B. Burns Dean, LMU Loyola Law School
  • Addis Gonzalez Graduate Student, Civil Engineering with an Environmental Focus
  • Elina Gorelik, Vice President of Advancement Services
  • Mary Beth Ingham, Ph.D. ’73, ’81, Trustee and Congregational Leader of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange, California, Emerita Professor of Philosophy, LMU Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts
  • Thomas Klein, Professor of Animation, LMU School of Film and Television
  • Kawanna Leggett, Ed.D., Senior Vice President for Student Affairs
  • Justin Levitt, J.D., Professor of Law and Gerald T. McLaughlin Fellow, LMU Loyola Law School
  • Loretta P. Martinez, J.D., Senior Vice President and General Counsel
  • David Moffet, Ph.D., Associate Dean and Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, LMU Frank R. Seaver College of Science and Engineering 
  • Marissa Papula, Director of Campus Ministry
  • Nancy Pluzdrak, Ed.D., (ex officio), Vice President for Human Resources
  • Edward Siebert, S.J., Trustee and Rector of the LMU Jesuit Community, Senior-Lecturer, LMU School of Film and Television
  • Maureen P. Weatherall, Ed.D., Vice Provost for Enrollment Management
  • Lawrence A. Wenner, Ph.D., Von der Ahe Professor of Communication and Ethics, LMU College of Communication and Fine Arts and LMU School of Film and Television
  • Kyo Yamashiro, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Education, LMU School of Education
  • D’Anthony Yates, Undergraduate Student, Biology 
  • Lizeth Zepeda, University Archivist, Archives and Special Collections