Satish Tripathi, who has served as president of the University at Buffalo since April 2011, announced today that he will be stepping down from the role in July 2026. Tripathi is the longest-serving president of UB since the school joined the SUNY system in 1962. He first came to campus in 2004 as a provost and executive vice president for academic affairs. In an email sent to UB students and faculty, Tripathi wrote, “While there is never an ideal time to leave this role, I do so knowing that the state of our university is strong.”
As president, Tripathi oversaw the launch of seven academic departments, including the new Department of AI and Society, which introduced seven first-of-their-kind undergraduate degree programs combining AI with traditional academic disciplines this fall. That initiative was part of Governor Kathy Hochul’s Empire AI Consortium, which represents some of the most robust computing power on a college campus in the nation.
As provost, Tripathi led the recruitment of faculty and oversaw research expenditures and grants awarded to the university. Tripathi introduced numerous programs that expanded student research opportunities, including a strategic recruitment process targeting international students. In 2005, he signed a memorandum with former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of India that established the Indo-U.S. Inter-University Collaborative Initiative in Higher Education and Research. As a result, there has been a robust partnership between India’s Amrita University and an increase in international students throughout all three campuses. He has also contributed significantly to UB’s programs in Singapore and created a campus that excels globally.
As announced in his “State of the University” address last fall, the most recent accomplishments from Tripathi include establishing academic and research partnerships with Vietnam, South Korea, India and the West Indies. The University was also granted $400 million for the previously mentioned Empire AI consortium.
Tripathi is slated to give his “State of the University Address” next week. Once he steps down, Tripathi will return to a faculty role in UB’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
