Claremont McKenna College President Hiram Chodosh announced at an all-faculty meeting Feb. 7 that he will step down at the end of the 2025-2026 academic year. He then shared his decision with the community in an email titled “My Next Chapter” on Mar. 7.
“After the 2026 spring semester, my thirteenth year as president, and more than a decade of Priya’s leadership of the Athenaeum, we will write our next chapter,” Chodosh said in the email. “For me, this will include writing, teaching and contributions to resolving national and global challenges in education, law and civic leadership in the nonprofit, philanthropic, and public sectors.”
In his time as president, Chodosh oversaw multiple projects, including the construction of the Robert Day Sciences Center, the Kravis Department of Integrated Sciences and the doubling of CMC’s footprint under an expanded campus master plan. Under Chodosh’s tenure, CMC saw its endowment double and a record-breaking “Campaign for CMC: Responsible Leadership” fundraising campaign that surpassed $1 billion.
CMC government professor John Pitney said in an interview with TSL that the Robert Day Sciences Center — and the college’s continued expansion with Roberts Campus under construction — are significant parts of Chodosh’s legacy.
He also said that Chodosh’s dedication to academic freedom helped CMC “stand out” from other colleges. He specifically highlighted Chodosh’s support for CMC’s Open Academy, a discussion program committed to freedom of expression, viewpoint diversity, and constructive dialogue, according to its website.
“I think people are going to miss him,” Pitney said. “I think faculty is very pleased with the trajectory of the college during his tenure, and I think CMC will remember him very fondly.”
Pitney joined CMC’s government faculty in 1986. In the nearly four decades since, he has seen the tenure of three presidents: Jack L. Stark, Pamela B. Gam and Chodosh.
“It’s hard to draw comparisons [between the presidents], because everyone was dealing with the college at different stages of its development,” Pitney said.
He explained how Stark “took a tiny regional college and put it on a trajectory to be a national college,” while Gam had a commitment to higher education, diversity and college expansion.
“Each president played a big part in taking this germ of an idea and turning it into what CMC is today,” Pitney said. “CMC bears the imprint of all of them.”
Pitney said Chodosh has always been willing to speak to students, emphasizing his appreciation of Chodosh’s accessibility to students and faculty.
“Any time I’ve really needed to talk to him, I’ve been able to without any problem,” Pitney said.
After his tenure of over a decade, Chodosh’s announcement shocked many, including Jason Bao CM ’27.
“The email came as a total surprise to me,” he said. “I wanted to ask some questions to Chodosh about potential reasons why he was leaving.”
Though his announcement left many questions unanswered, Chodosh concluded his email by stating his intent to continue uplifting and connecting with the CMC community.
“We still have 15 months to share stories, reflect back on what we’ve achieved and work hard to accelerate the momentum of an exciting future that is already here,” he wrote.
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