Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | April 17, 2023 | Worcester Business Journal 5 Grace Wang begins tenure as WPI president Grace Wang started on April 3 as president of Worcester Polytechnic Institute, the first person of color to lead WPI on a non-interim basis. "rough my campus visits and meetings with many of you, it is clear to me that WPI's founding principle of theory and practice has truly stood the test of time," Wang said in a letter addressed to the WPI community. "For 158 years our university has lived by this principle to educate the best critical thinkers, change makers, and STEM-focused leaders and to discover and innovate to tackle the challenges facing our society and planet. " Wang was hired in November and B R I E F S replaces Winston "Wole" Soboyejo WPI provost and senior vice president, who has served as interim president since the May 2022 departure of Laurie Leshin to head NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. Wang has a background in the public and private sectors as well as academia, joining WPI from e Ohio State University where she served as the executive vice president for research, innovation, and knowledge. Wang acknowledges the important role that the university plays in Worcester. In November she told WBJ speaking about Gateway Park in Worcester, ""It's really one of our responsibilities, and it's an opportunity as well, to play a significant role and partner with the city, the state, our investors, and community leaders on this project." Wang, who is Chinese-American, is the first person of color to hold the office of WPI president at the university on a non-interim basis. Soboyejo, who is Black and the first person of color to lead WPI, held the office as interim president in between Wang and Leshin, who was the first woman to lead the university. Wang joins Nancy Niemi of Framingham State University and Mary Lou Retelle of Anna Maria College as one of three women currently serving as president of the 15 Central Massachusetts colleges and Universities. JetBlue to add two Florida destinations from Worcester airport Travelers from Worcester Regional Airport will soon be able to fly direct with JetBlue to two new Florida desti- nations. Starting in June, year-round service to Orlando International Airport will resume aer being cut during the air- line's COVID rollbacks, and seasonal flights in winter will be available for trips to Southwest Florida Internation- al Airport in Fort Myers starting in January. Once both flights are launched, JetBlue will have three direct flights to and from Florida cities from the Worcester Regional Airport, adding to the established route to Fort Lauder- dale, according to an April 10 press release from JetBlue. JetBlue began serving the Worcester airport in 2013. "Worcester Regional Airport is an important economic asset for the entire state, and these new routes will help deliver even more growth and connectivity for our businesses and residents. I congratulate Massport and Continued on next page WPI President Grace Wang (far left) meets with students on her first day. PHOTO | COURTESY OF WORCESTER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE

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