| Peter W. Stanley | |
| Office: | 8th President of Pomona College |
| Term Start: | 1991 |
| Term End: | 2003 |
| Preceded: | David Alexander |
| Succeeded: | David W. Oxtoby |
| Birth Date: | 1940 |
| Alma Mater: | Harvard University |
| Profession: | Academic |
Peter William Stanley[1] (born 1940) is an American historian and academic administrator who served as the eighth president of Pomona College.[2] A scholar of Asian studies, his tenure at Pomona coincided with a substantial increase in the college's endowment and prestige.
Stanley earned his BA and doctorate degrees at Harvard University.[3] He was a Frank Knox Memorial Fellow at Jesus College, Cambridge University.[3] He subsequently taught Asian history at the University of Illinois and Harvard, and served as the chief academic officer at Carleton College for a year. From 1979 to 1987, he directed the education and culture program at the Ford Foundation.[4]
Stanley became president of Pomona College in 1991.[4] During his tenure, he oversaw a number of construction projects, including most prominently the Smith Campus Center (1999),[5] that modernized the college's facilities while restoring elements of Myron Hunt's master plan that had degraded over time.[4] He also led the extremely successful Campaign for Pomona College from 1997 to 2002, which ultimately raised over $206 million, far exceeding its goal.[4] Pomona's endowment increased from $364 million to $1.1. billion over the course of his presidency.
After Pomona, he became vice president of the executive search firm Isaacson.[3]
Stanley married Mary-Jane Cosgrove in 1978,[6] and had one daughter, Laura. After retiring from Pomona, Stanley moved with his wife to Old Saybrook, Connecticut; she died in January 2020 after 42 years of marriage.[6]
The Peter W. Stanley Academic Quadrangle at Pomona is named in his honor. The college also awarded him an honorary degree at its 2008 commencement ceremony.[3]