Announcing the new dean of MIT Sloan
To the members of the MIT community,
I am delighted to share the news that Rick Locke PhD '89 will become the next John C Head III Dean of the MIT Sloan School of Management, effective July 1, 2025. Rick's appointment is the next chapter in a transformative career that has taken him from MIT to Brown University to Apple Inc. and, fortunately for us, back to MIT.
Returning with new depths of experience and a compelling vision for the future
After earning his PhD from MIT in political science, Rick served the Institute with distinction for 25 years, including as head of the Department of Political Science and as MIT Sloan's deputy dean. A point of pride Rick cites from these years is his role in co-developing and co-teaching the Global Entrepreneurship Laboratory (G-LAB) with Professor Simon Johnson. G-LAB combines classroom discussions with intensive internships at international start-ups, opening students' eyes to the global economy through a lens of entrepreneurship. The course became very popular and influenced the development of other action learning labs focused on sustainability, healthcare, and marketing.
At Brown, Rick brought insights gleaned from MIT to his role first as director of the Watson Institute for International & Public Affairs and then as provost. During his tenure, Rick created new strategic plans that shaped major fundraising efforts. He also increased Brown's research output, hired exceptional faculty, and created a new office of industry engagement and technology licensing.
In his current role at Apple, as vice president and dean of Apple University, Rick is responsible for educating and training a workforce that spans the globe. He has focused on further integrating the university with different lines of business and leveraging Apple's technology to launch easily accessible and personalized educational programs to empower employees with the knowledge and skills to succeed in their roles. I am excited by the insights that Rick has gained in his time at Apple, which will help invent the future of business education programs at MIT Sloan.
As members of the faculty search advisory committee put it, Rick's depth of experience makes him a once-in-a-generation leader who will "hit the ground sprinting." The committee and I were impressed by his vision for removing frictions that slow research efforts, his exceptional track record of raising substantial funds to support academic communities, and his strong grasp of and attentiveness to the interests and needs of MIT Sloan's constituencies. Rick's extensive international experience, inclusive leadership style, and knack for setting and achieving goals will enable MIT Sloan to raise its profile and extend the school's reach and impact.
Extending appreciation and gratitude
I am profoundly grateful to John C Head III Dean (Interim) Georgia Perakis for expertly leading MIT Sloan through a period of transition after former Dean David Schmittlein’s remarkable tenure. In nearly a year at the helm, she expanded the school's presence in the Southeast Asia region with the opening of an MIT Sloan office in Bangkok, brought MIT Sloan's crucial perspective to the development of Institute strategic priorities such as the Climate Project at MIT and the Generative AI Consortium, and advanced essential cross-campus collaborations and fundraising efforts. Additionally, Georgia played an instrumental role in the launch of a joint entrepreneurship and AI certificate with the City College of New York. This successful program leverages a new educational model to prepare future STEM leaders and enable new levels of social mobility.
While shouldering all the responsibilities of the deanship, Georgia has also maintained her commitments to teaching, journal editorship, leading the Operations Research Center, and much more. She has been performing double duty and then some. Georgia is a true citizen of MIT, and we owe her our gratitude for her leadership and service.
I also want to acknowledge the faculty and staff who served on the search advisory committee as well as the alumni, staff, and students who contributed to the advisory groups that assisted the committee. I have listed their names below.
Collectively, these individuals dedicated countless hours to gathering community feedback. They helped to identify and articulate the leadership attributes and skills necessary in our next dean. With an eye to the future, they produced a roadmap to guide MIT Sloan's next chapter that will be helpful to Rick and his leadership team. I am particularly appreciative of the care the search advisory committee took with their charge and of the wisdom they offered me.
Please join me in thanking Georgia, the search committee, and the advisory groups for their excellent work and enduring commitment to the Institute. And together let's give Rick a warm welcome back. The possibilities that lie ahead for MIT Sloan are endless, and I can't wait to see where this amazing community takes us next.
Sincerely,
Cynthia Barnhart
Provost
Committee Membership
Faculty
Vivek Farias, Patrick J. McGovern (1959) Professor and Professor of Operations Management
Robert Gibbons, Sloan Distinguished Professor of Management and Professor of Applied Economics
Michelle Hanlon, Howard W. Johnson Professor and Professor of Accounting, Deputy Dean for Faculty and Research
John Horton, Associate Professor of Information Technology
Yasheng Huang, Epoch Foundation Professor of International Management and Professor of Global Economics and Management
Namrata Kala, Associate Professor of Applied Economics
Kate Kellogg, David J. McGrath Jr (1959) Professor of Management and Innovation and Professor, Work and Organizational Studies (Co-Chair)
Andrew W. Lo, Charles E. and Susan T. Harris Professor and Professor of Finance (Co-Chair)
Staff
William Garrett, Senior Associate Dean and Chief Administrative Officer, Sloan School
Kim Haberlin, Chief of Staff, Office of the Provost
Douglas Pfeiffer, Senior Advisor, Office of the Provost
Advisory Group Membership
Alumni
Noubar Afeyan, PhD ChemE '87
Ruby Chandy, SB ‘82, SM '89
Stephen DeFalco, SB '83, SM '88 (Chair)
Jean-Jacques Degroof, SM '93, PhD '02
Joseph Eastin, EMBA '15
Sam Epee-Bouyna, MBA '03
Hala Fadel, MBA '01
J. Frederic Kerrest, MBA '09
Judy Lewent, SM '72
Terry Stone, SM '76
Martin Tang, SM '72
Jeff Wilke, LGO '93
Staff
Scott Alessandro, Senior Director of Undergraduate Programs
Susan Brennan, Assistant Dean, Career Development Office
Nia DeYounge, Director, Student Life
Wes Esser, Chief Information Officer and Executive Director, Sloan Technology Services
JoAnna French, Director, Communications
Kathy Hawkes, Senior Associate Dean, External Engagement (Chair)
Maura Herson, Assistant Dean, MBA Program
Peter Hirst, Senior Associate Dean, Executive Education
Kristin LeClair, Executive Director and Chief of Staff
Dawna Levenson, Assistant Dean, Admissions
Bryan Thomas, Jr., Assistant Dean, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Tara Walor, Assistant Dean, Student Services
Student
David Brown, MBA '25
Anne Castille Buisson, MBAn '24
Leah Gaffney, MBA '24
Gabbie Girard, Ugrad '25
Georges Haidar, MFin ‘24
MJ Jamieson, EMBA '25
Easlynn Lee, MBA '25
Lawrence Petit-Frere, SFMBA '24
Becca Souza, Director, Action Learning Operational Support (Chair)