Dr. Ray Jayawardhana at the Vatican Observatory (Photo – Anna Marlis Burgard )
Ray Jayawardhana officially began serving as the 10th president of California Institute of Technology on July 1, 2026. He also assumes the roles of Sonja and William Davidow Presidential Chair and professor of astronomy.
By News Desk
Jayawardhana succeeds Thomas F. Rosenbaum, who led the institute for more than a decade.
In his first message to the Caltech community, Jayawardhana said he was honored to begin his tenure and described Caltech and Jet Propulsion Laboratory as longstanding symbols of scientific exploration and discovery.
As president, Jayawardhana will oversee Caltech’s campus in Pasadena as well as JPL, which Caltech manages for NASA. His responsibilities also include oversight of research facilities managed by the institute, including Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory, W. M. Keck Observatory, and Palomar Observatory.
In recent remarks, Jayawardhana said he intends to advocate for both fundamental research and applied innovation, describing them as complementary. He also said he plans to focus on supporting faculty and students pursuing high-risk research ideas and on bringing people together to advance the institute’s mission.
Jayawardhana said that during the past six months he met with more than 220 members of the Caltech and JPL community, as well as external stakeholders, as part of his transition into the role.
The appointment follows a presidential search conducted by Caltech’s Board of Trustees. Taylor W. Lawrence, a member of the board and the presidential search committee, said Jayawardhana was selected from a group of candidates with strong academic and leadership credentials.
Azita Emami, chair of the faculty and a member of the presidential search committee, said she looks forward to working with Jayawardhana and the administration.
Before joining Caltech, Jayawardhana served as provost of Johns Hopkins University, where he oversaw the university’s 10 schools along with interdisciplinary academic programs and administrative units.
An astrophysicist, Jayawardhana’s research focuses on the formation of stars, brown dwarfs, and planetary systems. He has authored more than 180 peer-reviewed scientific papers and several popular science books. His writing has also appeared in publications including The Economist, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal. He will continue his research as a professor of astronomy at Caltech.
Jayawardhana has previously visited Caltech as a graduate student, when he attended the Michelson Summer School, a predecessor to the institute’s Sagan Exoplanet Summer Workshops. He has also recalled requesting a JPL booklet featuring images from Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 while growing up in Sri Lanka, describing it as one of his earliest connections to the institution.
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