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The Gonzaga University Board of Trustees on Friday (April 17) appointed Thayne M. McCulloh as interim president at Gonzaga, beginning in mid-July. McCulloh has served the University for nearly 19 years in various administrative and academic capacities. He will serve as interim president until a search for a highly qualified and available Jesuit candidate results in the appointment of a permanent successor to Rev. Robert J. Spitzer, S.J., who will complete his 11-year term as president July 15.

Thayne M. McCulloh, Gonzaga University Interim President Photo credit: Jennifer Raudebaugh

McCulloh Background 
McCulloh received his bachelor’s degree in psychology from Gonzaga in 1989, and was accepted into the Master of Science program in experimental psychology at Oxford University in England that same year. In 1998, he completed his Doctor of Philosophy degree in experimental social psychology, also from Oxford.

“Here’s an individual who is the product of our mission, as a student educated by Jesuit and lay companions, and who has for the past 23 years witnessed and been a part of the way this University exposes students to its mission,” Nelles said. “He has been practicing and strongly supporting Jesuit-lay collaboration ever since he took his first job here, back as a resident assistant during his undergraduate days.”

McCulloh said, “I am deeply honored and very humbled to be asked by the Trustees to serve the University in this way. It has been a privilege to work with Father Spitzer and so many excellent colleagues over the years, to have participated in the strengthening of this vibrant and successful institution. Gonzaga is unique among Jesuit and Catholic universities. It is a wonderful and exciting place to be, and my family and I are grateful to be a part of it.”

“Having had the recent opportunity to work with deans and faculty has been enormously positive and important for me. The faculty are the heart and soul of an academic institution,” McCulloh said. “To understand and appreciate faculty issues is extremely important, and I believe it will be critical in our decision-making going forward.”

“As we have dealt with faculty concerns, student issues, financial challenges or whatever the focus of the moment might have been, my colleagues and I always try to ask: ‘How do we best serve the students of Gonzaga University, and simultaneously support the University Mission?’

“I spent three years in the Army after I graduated from high school,” McCulloh said. “For most of my time I was stationed at Fort Polk, in the heart of Louisiana. One of the things I realized out of that experience is how many bright, talented and hard-working people in this country will never go to college because they lack the resources or have not received a strong pre-college education. What we do at Gonzaga is incredibly important, and my memories of Louisiana, and many other parts of our nation, remind me of that. How fortunate are we, even in these difficult economic times, to be engaged in the mission of higher education. Our work as a Jesuit, Catholic university is about engaging in a transformational process, working together with students who make a positive difference now and for the future.”

McCulloh is married to wife Julie, and they have three daughters, Kathryne, Anne and Emily. (See biographical page for more information on McCulloh.)

Search for Jesuit President Continues
Gonzaga began its search for Father Spitzer’s replacement in the fall of 2008. Although the search has yet to bring forward a recommendation for Gonzaga’s next Jesuit president, Nelles said the search process will continue, and “We will take whatever time is necessary to identify, interview and appoint Father Spitzer’s successor.”

THAYNE M. McCULLOH -- Biography
Born in Los Angeles and raised in Washington, D.C. and Seattle, McCulloh attended Seattle’s Bishop Blanchet High School. Following high school, he completed a three-year enlistment as a food service sergeant in the US Army. He arrived at Gonzaga University in its centennial year (1986-87), served as a resident assistant and resident director, was president of Alpha Sigma Nu (the Jesuit honor society), and was elected student body president in his senior year. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology, magna cum laude, and proudly shares with Harry H. Sladich, the only other non-Jesuit to serve as interim president (1991, 1997-98) the distinction of receiving Gonzaga’s Lindberg Loyalty Award. In 1989, he was accepted to study for the Master of Science degree in experimental psychology at Oxford University. He was awarded the Doctor of Philosophy (D.Phil.) in experimental social psychology from Oxford in 1998, and his thesis examined the impact of sex role stereotypes on social situations.

McCulloh’s employment at Gonzaga began in 1990 and involved serving in several positions within student affairs as well as teaching in the psychology department (beginning in 1994). From 1990-92 he coordinated the work of the residence hall staff, and following a one-year leave of absence returned in 1993 as director of housing. During his tenure in housing the Dussault Apartments were completed and the Burch Apartments were constructed. In 1995, he was appointed assistant dean of students, and was instrumental in the founding of disability support services. In 1996, he was appointed dean of student academic services; in 1998 he was appointed dean of student financial services. In each role, he was involved in the redesign of the institution’s enrollment management infrastructure, examination of student retention, and development of a new approach to financial aid policy. In 2002, he was appointed associate academic vice president and also successfully chaired the comprehensive institutional accreditation (2004). In 2004, he was appointed vice president for administration and planning, which involved work with the plant and construction services, human resources, disability resources, student financial services, and information technology divisions. As VP for administration, he chaired the development of the institutional strategic plan and provided oversight for the architecture of the campus wireless network.

Upon the departure of former Academic Vice President Dr. Stephen Freedman in summer 2007, McCulloh was appointed interim academic vice president. During his tenure in this position, his focus has been on working to improve core administrative and resource-allocation processes, initiating a new core curriculum review process, and supporting faculty-based initiatives oriented towards improvement in the teaching and learning environment.

McCulloh has developed expertise in several key areas of higher education administration, including financial aid and retention, leadership development, professional mentoring, and organizational succession planning; he has been engaged as a consultant in these areas by numerous institutions. Until recently, he also remained actively engaged in undergraduate teaching and facilitating student research – particularly in the area of cross-cultural psychology – as part of the psychology department.

McCulloh is married to Julie McCulloh, dean of Admission at Gonzaga University. The couple has three daughters, Kathryne, Anne, and Emily. The McCulloh family is active in the community of St. Ann’s Catholic Church in Spokane. McCulloh’s professional activities have involved longstanding service to regional accreditation in the Northwest, service as a member and officer on the board of directors for EdFund (a public-benefit corporation of the California Student Aid Commission), and appointment to the Spokane Human Rights Commission. He is a member of the American Psychological Association (APA), the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA), the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), and the College Board. McCulloh’s biography appears in Who’s Who in America, and this past January he was honored by the Fulcrum Foundation of Seattle as a Champion of Catholic Education.