CORVALLIS, Ore. — Oregon State University welcomed Dr. Jayathi Murthy as the university's new president Friday, marking the official start of her term. She's the first woman of color to lead Oregon's largest public university.
"The student is the heart of our operation," Murthy said. "That's why we're here, and so a big focus on student access and student success is really important to us."
Murthy succeeds OSU's former president, F. King Alexander, who resigned last year amid criticism he mishandled sexual misconduct allegations at Louisiana State University, his previous school.
Murthy comes to Corvallis from California, where she was the Dean of UCLA's School of Engineering.
Amelia Moore, a sophomore at Oregon State University, said she's excited to see what changes Murthy will bring and hopes things will continue to run smoothly on campus.
"I love being able to have drop-in and advising appointments and going to talk to my advisor, just easily accessing everything," she said.
But access to higher education is a growing concern for many families and students as tuition increases. New undergraduate students enrolling at OSU in fall will see a 4.5% increase of tuition.
That’s a concern the new president hopes to address. She said her biggest focus will be on students as she takes the helm at OSU.
"I am deeply, deeply worried about school debt and what we impose on our students," Murthy said. "And we are going to do everything on our part to control that."