Greensboro, N.C. — March 7
The Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) announces the appointment of John R. Ryan as its new president and chief executive officer.
Ryan is chancellor of the State University of New York (SUNY), the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States.
He also has served on CCL’s board of governors since 2002. He will begin his new role at CCL this summer, although his exact start date is still being determined.
A retired U.S. Navy Vice Admiral, Ryan replaces John R. Alexander, who has served as CCL’s president since 1997 and last year announced his plans to retire after leading CCL to unprecedented global growth and operating revenues which reached $79 million last fiscal year.
Before becoming chancellor of SUNY in 2005, Ryan served as president of the State University of New York Maritime College and as interim president of the University at Albany.
From 1998 to 2002, he was superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy, where his focus on academics and fund-raising won widespread praise.
A former pilot, Ryan commanded squadrons in Asia, Europe and the Middle East during a 35-year career in the military.
“Our search for a new CEO yielded a number of excellent candidates,” said Ingar Skaug, a Norwegian shipping company executive and chairman of CCL’s board of governors. “Among those, John stood out for his dynamic leadership skills, his extraordinary work on behalf of educational institutions and his strong commitment to CCL.”
Ryan is a 1967 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and earned a master’s degree in administration from George Washington University.
He also completed the program for senior executives in national and international security at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
He is a graduate of the center’s Leadership at the Peak program for senior executives. A native of Mountainhome, Pa., Ryan and his wife, Diane, have three grown daughters and four grandchildren.
“Through my service on CCL’s board of governors, I’ve witnessed firsthand the tremendous impact that we have on leaders and organizations throughout the world in every type of sector,” Ryan said. “This institution has a long history of groundbreaking work in leadership education and research.
“I look forward to the challenge and privilege of serving as its sixth president.”
