Katia Passerini Named the First Woman President of Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington

Katia Passerini has been named the first-ever woman president of Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington. She will assume her presidency in July.

According to the U.S. Department of Education, Gonzaga University enrolls some 5,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. Women represent 54 percent of the undergraduate student body.

Currently, Dr. Passerini serves as provost and senior executive vice president at Seton Hall University in South Orange, New Jersey, where she had a stint as interim president during the 2023-2024 academic year. Prior to joining the Seton Hall University administration, she was the Lesley H. and William L. Collins Distinguished Chair & Dean of the Collins College of Professional Studies at St. John’s University in New York. Earlier, she spent over a decade on the faculty at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, where she held a joint appointment in the information systems department and the Ying Wu College of Computing Sciences. She served in several leadership roles during this time, including Hulburt Chair of MIS and dean of the Albert Dorman Honors College.

A scholar of information technology, Dr. Passerini has published extensively in the areas of computer-mediated learning, IT productivity, and knowledge management, including her co-authored book, Information Technology for Small Business: Managing the Digital Enterprise (Springer, 2012). Her professional background includes overseeing global IT projects for Booz Allen Hamilton and the World Bank.

Dr. Passerini holds a political science degree from LUISS University in Italy and an economics degree from University of Rome Tor Vergata. She earned her MBA and Ph.D. from George Washington University.