Dear campus community members,
I am pleased to share the wonderful news that Guilherme Costa has accepted my offer to serve as Ithaca College’s new Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary to the Board of Trustees. Guilherme will begin his position here on September 10.
Guilherme comes to Ithaca from South Dakota, where he serves as the chief legal officer of the South Dakota Board of Regents, which governs the state’s six public universities. Prior to this experience, he led the administrative operation of the University of Idaho Office of General Counsel.
Throughout his career, Guilherme has demonstrated innovative, creative leadership and a deep dedication to higher education. His varied experience and thoughtful, collaborative approach will help us reach our goals of providing a deeply student-centered learning community and a safe, productive campus environment that values full participation.
Guilherme earned his juris doctor degree in 2008 from the University of Notre Dame Law School, has a master’s from the University of Idaho in adult/organizational learning and leadership, and two bachelor’s degrees from the University of Florida: one in business administration and one in political science. I am excited to welcome him as a key member of our senior leadership team, and an important partner to our board of trustees and to our campus community.
As a reminder, Executive Vice President Nancy Pringle will continue her work with the college until June 2019, when she retires after 25 years of tremendous service to Ithaca College. In addition to providing support to me and my office on major projects and initiatives, Nancy will play a critical role in assisting Guilherme during his first year at IC. This overlap was intentional, and I am very grateful to have Nancy’s support and deep institutional knowledge during Guilherme’s transition into his position, and throughout the overall evolution of the college’s senior leadership team.
I want to take a moment now to offer my heartfelt gratitude to the search committee for their outstanding work that extended into the summer, and to the committee co-chairs, Melissa Daly, Chief of Staff in the Office of the President, and Steven Mauk, Professor in the School of Music, for their thorough and thoughtful work in bringing this search to a successful conclusion. I am grateful as well to the many members of the campus community who actively participated in the interview process.
Guilherme’s hiring represents the closure of the senior team searches for the 2017-18 academic year, and I am thrilled to begin the 2018-19 academic year with Guilherme, Vice President for Finance and Administration Bill Guerrero, and Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs La Jerne Cornish, all on board.
I invite you to read the college’s news story about Guilherme, and I hope you will join me in welcoming him and his family to the Ithaca community.
All my best,
Shirley M. Collado
President