Credit: Penn State The Penn State trustees on Thursday named the University of Louisville’s president Neeli Bendapudi to succeed Eric Barron as the school’s top administrator.The unanimous board vote to hire Bendapudi makes her the first woman and first person of color to serve as the 98,000-student institution’s next president.Bendapudi, 58, is a marketing professor whose research involves consumer behavior.
She became Louisville’s president three years ago.Barron, retiring in June, came to Penn State from Florida State University in 2014 while fallout from Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal was still a major problem for campus leaders in State College."Being president of this institution is a sacred trust, and it’s truly the honor.