Jon Stuckey named as the ninth president of Messiah University
(March 31, 2026) -- The Messiah University Board of Trustees has named Jon C. Stuckey, Ph.D., as the University’s ninth president, effective May 1, 2026. Stuckey, who has been serving as interim president since July 1, 2025, was permanently appointed to the presidency on March 27 via a unanimous vote of Messiah’s board.
“As president of the interim,” said Board Chair Rod L. Musser, “Dr. Stuckey demonstrated the qualities that we were looking for in Messiah’s next president, a commitment to integrating intellectual rigor and Christian faith, gracious hospitality, leadership in crisis, strong communication with stakeholders, and navigating challenging issues. Those qualities—along with his confident, yet humble, leadership style, his deep embrace of Messiah’s mission, and a strategic vision for the University going forward—set him apart.”
“The board is extremely grateful for Jon’s faithful guidance during this past transitional year,” Musser continued, “and we are confident that Messiah University, under Jon’s presidency, will continue to advance and lead as a premier institution of Christ-centered higher education.”
It is the honor of a lifetime to serve and lead at a place that has defined my vocational and personal faith journey for the past 26 years,” said President Stuckey. “Messiah University and our students, educators, staff and alumni have inspired, enriched and encouraged me in innumerable ways,” he continued. “Christ Preeminent truly describes not only our legacy and heritage, but also our future. As we move forward together into the next chapter of what the Lord has called Messiah to become, we do so with confidence in His faithfulness and provision throughout our history.
The search process
The University partnered with DSG|Storbeck, a national search firm, to conduct a six-month search that attracted a broad and highly competitive pool of applicants and nominees from across the country. Stuckey, who has served at Messiah since 2000 in a variety of administrative and educator roles, was unanimously presented to the board by a presidential search committee composed of trustees, faculty, staff and alumni. He succeeds Kim S. Phipps, Ph.D., who retired as Messiah’s eighth president in June of 2025.
