Laurie Leshin

WBJ sources over the past 35 years have contributed memorable sentiments.

“Grace” Jinliu Wang, who on Nov. 7 was selected by WPI to be its 17th president, believes in and embodies this concept of combining theory and practice to fuel innovation and to apply that innovation to have maximum impact on the world.

Worcester Polytechnic Institute has named “Grace” Jinliu Wang as its 17th president, becoming the first person of color to lead WPI and succeeding Laurie Leshin, who left WPI for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in May.

The building, currently known as the Project Center, is to be renamed to the Laurie A. Leshin Global Project Center, according to the Thursday announcement from WPI.

Since 2020, more than half of Central Massachusetts’ colleges and universities have seen a transition in top leadership, with eight presidents leaving or announcing their departure in the last two years.

Worcester Polytechnic Institute President Laurie Leshin will leave her role at the college to become the director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory at the California Institute of Technology, according to a Thursday announcement from Caltech.

On Tuesday, Worcester Polytechnic Institute received a $999,963 grant from the state government to support a new research center focused on manufacturing and cybersecurity, according to a press release from the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative.

Worcester Polytechnic Institute has officially removed the name of the late Robert Foisie, an alumnus and the largest donor in its history who gave $63 million over his lifetime, from its formerly named Foisie Business School and Foisie Innovation Studio & Messenger Hall.