Harlan M. Sands is seventh president of University

Cleveland State University will celebrate the Investiture of President Harlan M. Sands on Friday, October 5, 2018.

The theme for the event is “Forward Together,” reflecting President Sands’ commitment to advancing Cleveland’s public research university in collaboration with the campus community as well as the broader community.

“This is a celebration of Cleveland State University – where we have been, where we are today and where we are heading,” said President Sands. “Our hope is that students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends – including those new to the CSU family – will share in this special moment. The next chapter in the history of CSU is ours to write, collectively, which is why our ‘Forward Together’ theme is so fitting.”

The main festivities will begin at 2 p.m. with a procession in full academic regalia from the CSU Student Center (2121 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland) to Waetjen Auditorium in the Music and Communication Building (2001 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland), where the Investiture ceremony will begin at 2:30 p.m. Elected officials, civic leaders and distinguished guests from universities around the country will be in attendance, in addition to CSU students, faculty, staff and alumni. President Sands will receive the CSU presidential medallion and deliver his Investiture address during the ceremony, which will be followed by a reception in the Student Center’s Joanie and Tom Adler Atrium.

“This will be a great day for Cleveland State University and for Cleveland,” said David H. Gunning II, chair of the CSU Board of Trustees. “President Sands is a visionary leader who will further CSU’s position as a leading urban research university and strengthen the University’s connectivity to Northeast Ohio.”

Following an extensive national search, Harlan M. Sands was named as the seventh president in the 54-year history of Cleveland State University on January 29, 2018. He took office on June 1, 2018. Sands came to CSU from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, where he was vice dean of finance and administration, chief financial officer and chief administrative officer. He previously held leadership positions at the University of Louisville, the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Florida International University. Prior to his career in higher education, he served in the U.S. Navy for more than a decade and as a public defender in Miami. He earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Wharton, a law degree from George Mason University and an MBA from George Washington University. Sands and his wife, Lynn, have two sons, Samson and A.J.