Edward L. Ayers

Edward Lynn Ayers
at 2016 Fall for the Book
President of the University of Richmond
In office July 1, 2007 – July 1, 2015
Preceded by	William E. Cooper
Succeeded by	Ronald Crutcher
Personal details
Born	(1953-01-22) January 22, 1953 (age 64)
Alma mater	University of Tennessee (B.A., 1973) Yale University (M.A., 1977; Ph.D., 1980)
Profession	Educator and historian

Edward Lynn "Ed" Ayers (born January 22, 1953) is an American historian, professor, administrator, and ninth president of the University of Richmond, serving from 2007 to 2015. In July 2013, he was awarded the National Humanities Medal by President Obama at a White House ceremony.

Ayers is the author of four and editor of seven books on the history of nineteenth-century America. His book, In the Presence of Mine Enemies, Civil War in the Heart of America, won the Bancroft Prize for distinguished writing in American history and the Beveridge Prize for the best book in English on the history of the Americas since 1492.The Promise of the New South: Life After Reconstruction was a finalist for both the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize.

Ayers received a Bachelor of Arts degree in American studies from the University of Tennessee in 1974. He then earned both a Master of Arts and a doctorate in American studies from Yale University. During his presidency he developed of The Richmond Promise, a five-year strategic plan to guide University priorities. In addition to teaching a first-year seminar, Ayers serves as a senior research fellow with the University’s Digital Scholarship Lab, which creates digital tools to reveal the patterns of American history.

Prior to his appointment as President of the University of Richmond, he had been on the faculty of the University of Virginia since 1980, most recently as the Hugh P. Kelly Professor of History and the Buckner W. Clay Dean of the College and Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. In 2003, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching named Ayers National Professor of the Year.

Recently, he has chaired the National Endowment for the Humanities program that explored the preliminary emancipation proclamation. He also chaired the first Signature Conference of the Virginia Sesquicentennial Commemoration of the American Civil War Commission, and currently chairs the Steering Committee of The Future of Richmond’s Past which sponsors Civil War and Emancipation Day and inclusive conversations to advance a better understanding of Richmond’s shared history. Ayers served as Senior Scholar for Making Sense of the American Civil War program sponsored nationally by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the American Library Association’s Public Program Office.