Gale Merseth

Gale leads higher education searches with a particular emphasis on university presidencies and academic deanships that have a strong applied and career-oriented focus. He has placed more than 35 business school deans for public and private universities as well as deans across many fields and disciplines at flagship public universities. Since joining Isaacson, Miller in 2004, he has become a trusted partner to his clients, as demonstrated by his repeat work with research intensive public university clients such as the University System of Maryland, Indiana University, and the University of Massachusetts. He has led president and chancellor searches at both public and private universities and colleges across the country, including University of Maryland College Park, University of Massachusetts Lowell, University of Maryland Baltimore County, Illinois Institute of Technology, and University of New Hampshire.

Gale’s success stems from a deep knowledge of higher education, having spent 13 years as a faculty member and administrator at Harvard Business School and four years as founding dean of the Peter F. Drucker Graduate School of Management at Claremont Graduate University. As founding executive director of the Massachusetts Education Financing Authority, he also brings experience from the intersection of higher education, state and federal government, and investment banking. Having launched a web-based software company to support project-based learning in middle schools, Gale has experience with the opportunities—and challenges—associated with online learning.

His entrepreneurial endeavors extend outside his professional career, too. He started youth basketball travel teams for middle schoolers in Claremont, CA, and Lexington, MA, that spurred the development of full-fledged community programs. Additionally, he was a founding board member of an organization that used basketball as a vehicle to help girls develop leadership skills.