About Katherine A. Rowe

Twenty-Eighth President, William & Mary

On February 20, 2018, William & Mary’s Board of Visitors unanimously elected Katherine A. Rowe as the 28th president of the university. A nationally recognized innovator in higher education, Rowe champions the liberal arts, entrepreneurship and pathways to careers. She was sworn in as president on July 1, 2018 and inaugurated during the Charter Day Ceremony in February 2019. 

Rowe oversaw the creation of William & Mary’s strategic plan, Vision 2026 — the result of an inclusive, multi-year planning process, which included crafting the university’s first-ever values statement. Built on four cornerstone initiatives — data, water, democracy and careers — Vision 2026 invests in the capacities required for leadership in the 21st century. 

At William & Mary, Rowe has advanced access and affordability, including covering full tuition and fees for all in-state, undergraduate Pell Grant recipients. Under her leadership, the university founded a new School of Computing, Data Sciences & Physics and received R1 designation by the Carnegie Classification system. Rowe’s cross-university initiatives include a university-wide civics curriculum, a central Entrepreneurship Hub, and the restoration of the Williamsburg Bray School — the oldest extant schoolhouse for Black children in the hemisphere. Major gifts during her tenure include support for military and veteran students and conservation science. A $100 million gift in 2024 established William & Mary’s Batten School & VIMS as the national leader in coastal resilience. A $50 million scholarship gift in 2025 provides full tuition support for students pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Coastal and Marine Sciences for all times coming.

Rowe successfully closed the university’s $1.1B For the Bold campaign in 2020 and a dedicated campaign for Athletics, All In, in 2023. As fan-in-chief for William & Mary’s 23 Division I athletics teams, Rowe frequently leads the cheering section during competitions. In March 2025, she traveled with the women’s basketball team to Austin, Texas, for the university’s first NCAA Tournament run.

An award-winning teacher and scholar, Rowe is also an entrepreneur. She serves on numerous technology and workforce boards in Virginia. She is a past president of the Shakespeare Association of America.

Rowe holds a bachelor’s degree from Carleton College and a master’s and a Ph.D. from Harvard University. She has completed graduate work in Cinema and Media Studies at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

Rowe spent more than a decade coaching Ultimate Frisbee. She was a World Ultimate Club Finalist and a Women’s Nationals Finalist. She co-founded the nonprofit Boston Ultimate Disc Alliance and the Carleton College women’s Ultimate team.

Rowe shares her love of Ultimate with her spouse, Bruce Jacobson, William & Mary’s First Gentleman. They have two adult children, Daniel and Beah.