Susan Resneck Pierce has come to be known in liberal arts college circles as the quintessential expert on where this particular facet of the higher education landscape now finds itself. Dr. Pierce won for herself a well-deserved reputation as a distinguished academic leader well before she was named President of Puget Sound, a post she held for years with acclaim on campus and off.
She is highly knowledgeable, extremely well connected in the United States at the highest levels of education, an adroit writer and speaker, and an invaluable resource for presidents and boards which find themselves, especially in these troubling times, confronted with often intractable dilemmas on all sides.
Her most recent books are among the best guides published within the last forty years. I have recommended them to scores of individuals over the course of the months of my interim stewardship of the presidency at Sweet Briar College. Her guidance, sage counsel, and integrity have benefitted all of us in incalculable ways.