Ken Gormley to step down as Duquesne president next year, stay on as chancellor

Duquesne University President Ken Gormley will step down next year and take on the role of chancellor, capping a decade-long run at the helm of the Catholic university where he navigated declining enrollment and the covid-19 pandemic while strengthening several key programs.

Gormley’s semi-retirement will start July 1, 2026, he announced Saturday. Until then, the Duquesne Board of Directors will embark on a search for his successor led by chair Diane Hupp.

His future position will certainly be less demanding, he said, with a focus on maintaining alumni, donor and government relationships as well as special projects, like the university’s 150th anniversary in 2028. He’ll also take some time, and perhaps a semester-long sabbatical, to continue studying constitutional law and the American presidency in hopes of penning a fifth book on the topics.

Gormley, 69, said he still has plenty of energy, but is abiding by a rule once that led him to limit his stint as Forest Hills mayor to three years: “Get out while they still love you.”

It’s time for “for someone else to get behind the wheel and start making their mark on the place while we’re in a really strong position,” he added.

When he jumped from law school dean to president in 2016, Gormley spelled out three goals in an interview with TribLive: Better integrate the university in Pittsburgh’s technological transition, grow the endowment and improve the athletic programs.

By several measures, he’s accomplished those goals.

Gormley has overseen several major capital projects, including a $45 million renovation to the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse and upgrades to the Thomas R. Kline School of Law funded by a $50 million commitment by its namesake. Duquesne has also launched its School of Science and Engineering in recent years and College of Osteopathic Medicine, fulfilling a more than century-old vision for a medical school by university’s Spiritan founders.

All the while, the university’s endowment has more than doubled.

And in 2024, the men’s basketball team secured its first March Madness berth since 1977.

“I figured it costs a lot of money to have a mediocre program; we might as well spend more and have a good program,” Gormley said.

He also took pride in the lack of “draconian” cuts, even as the university shrunk from about 9,400 to 8,200 students during his tenure, mirroring the contraction of many other small to mid-sized universities across Pennsylvania.

John McGinley, board chair emeritus, described Gormley as a leader with “boundless energy” whose legacy will be fondly remembered.

He continued: “Some alums call it a ‘Golden Age of Duquesne.’”

The Rev. John Fogarty is leader of the U.S. province of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, the formal name for the Spiritans. He lauded Gormley for how he “consistently uplifted the Spiritan mission and tradition of Duquesne University throughout his presidency.”

Gormley grew up in Swissvale and Edgewood. He attended the University of Pittsburgh as an undergraduate before moving on to Harvard Law School, “but I never wanted anything but to come back to Pittsburgh and make a contribution,” he said.

Three of his four children attended Duquesne as undergraduate or graduate students.

“I just marvel at how it has been the perfect home to my family,” he said. “That makes all of this so meaningful, and it makes me want to keep thinking of ways to allow the momentum to continue.”