DePaul University names Robert Manuel new president

Manuel will leave University of Indianapolis to replace outgoing President A. Gabriel Esteban.

SHARE DePaul University names Robert Manuel new president
DePaul University announced Dr. Robert L. Manuel will serve as its 13th president.

DePaul University announced Dr. Robert L. Manuel will serve as its 13th president.

Jeff Carrion/DePaul University

DePaul University’s board of trustees Tuesday named Robert Manuel to become the 13th president of the nation’s largest Catholic university.

DePaul officials touted Manuel, who has been president at the University of Indianapolis since 2012, as an “accomplished, transformative leader in higher education.”

“I’m inspired by the life-changing opportunities a DePaul education creates for its students, as well as the community it has built for faculty and staff,” Manuel said. “I am excited by the potential partnerships that are possible because of the robust and diverse community in which DePaul lives.”

Manuel will succeed A. Gabriel Esteban, who last year announced plans to step down this spring.

“President-elect Manuel’s inspirational leadership combined with his dedication to academic values will solidify DePaul University’s future as a distinguished institution that offers a transformative education to a diverse group of students,” DePaul Board Chair Gerald A. Beeson said in the news release.

During Manuel’s tenure at the University of Indianapolis, he led a fundraising campaign that raised $100 million as well as the construction of a new health pavilion and a new building for the engineering school. “UIndy” is a private college of 5,600 students, affiliated with the United Methodist Church, and competes in collegiate athletics in NCAA Division II.

DePaul has some 23,000 undergraduate and graduate students on two campuses in the city.

A native of Massachusetts, Manuel, 54, also has worked as an administrator at Georgetown University, New York University’s School of Continuing Studies and stints at several small colleges. He and his wife, Wilmara, have three daughters. He will start at DePaul on Aug. 1.

The Latest
Suspect Romeo Nance’s son witnessed the shooting of at least five relatives, according to Joliet police reports obtained through a public records request. The reports also indicate the child’s mother was more deeply involved in the case than first thought.
Counsell is measured and stoic, more so than Joe Maddon or David Ross. After Justin Steele’s Opening Day injury, Counsell will put his head down, pace and figure it out.
Steele held the Rangers to one run through 4 2/3 innings.
The Cubs opened the season against the reigning World Series champions in Texas.