Marvin Krislov, who has been president of Pace University since 2017, will take office in July 2027 for a three-year term. The College Board of Trustees announced the appointment by unanimous vote Friday.
Krislov will succeed acting-President Jonathan Becker, who was appointed in the position after the retirement of former President Leon Botstein. Botstein said in May he would vacate the leadership role amid scrutiny over his ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Botstein resigned from all Bard College-affiliated positions earlier this month after House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin called for an investigation from federal law enforcement into Botstein's relationship with Epstein.
In a letter to the Bard College Board of Trustees, Rep. Raskin, a Maryland Democrat, highlighted an email allegedly sent from Botstein to Epstein, regarding one of his victims, which said "Is she for me, or are you keeping her for yourself?" Botstein denies sending the email and has maintained his connections to Epstein were solely about fundraising for the private Hudson Valley college.
The Board of Trustees announced Thursday a forensic analysis of the email conducted by FTI Consulting, a cybersecurity firm, concluded "there is a strong substantive basis for questioning the authenticity, integrity, and origin of the Disputed Emails."
Board of Trustees Chairman Brandon Weber said in a statement Krislov is "the ideal leader to guide the College forward at a pivotal moment in the institution's 166-year history."
In a statement to WAMC, acting-President Becker said he has met with Krislov and they had a "productive discussion." Becker said "For the remainder of the year I will be focusing on the issues that I have been focusing on: campus climate; student success; ensuring that the arts and humanities remain central to the institution's mission and Bard's public interest programs."
