David W. Oxtoby

Who is David W. Oxtoby?

David William Oxtoby is the ninth and current president of Pomona College. He has held this position since July 1, 2003. A theoretical chemist, he received his undergraduate education at Harvard University and his Ph.D. in chemistry in 1975 from the University of California, Berkeley. Prior to his appointment at Pomona College, he was the dean of physical sciences at the University of Chicago.

As a research chemist, Oxtoby is author or co-author of more than 165 scientific articles on such subjects as light scattering, chemical reaction dynamics and phase transitions. He has been invited as a guest lecturer at conferences and institutions around the globe. He also co-authored two popular textbooks in chemistry—Principles of Modern Chemistry and Chemistry: Science of Change. He has received fellowships from the Guggenheim, von Humboldt, Dreyfus, Sloan, Danforth and National Science foundations.

He is a fellow of the American Physical Society and a member of the American Chemical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In 2012, he was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.