Marian University in Indianapolis announces presidential transition

Marian University President Dan Elsener, left, will step down from the role at the end of June 2027. Kenith Britt, right, will become the university's next president.

Special to The Criterion

Marian University in Indianapolis recently announced that Daniel Elsener will step down as its president in 2027 after leading more than 25 years of “extraordinary growth” at the city’s only Catholic college.

While Elsener will transition into a role as president emeritus, Marian’s board of trustees chose Kenith Britt, chief operating officer and chancellor of the university, to become its next president.

Marian officials noted that Elsener will continue to serve as the school’s president through the 2026-27 school year, a time when Britt will work alongside Elsener and other university leaders before assuming the position of president on July 1, 2027.

“This is a moment of tremendous gratitude, but it is also a moment of tremendous optimism about where Marian University is headed,” said Toby McClamroch, chairman of Marian’s board of trustees, in a press release from the university.

“Twenty-five years ago, Marian was fighting for its future. Today, Marian is building the future. Dan Elsener’s extraordinary leadership helped make that transformation possible, and the board has tremendous confidence that Ken Britt is the right leader to carry that momentum forward.”

The press release noted, “When Elsener became president in 2001, Marian was still Marian College, enrolling approximately 1,100 undergraduate students and facing significant financial and enrollment challenges. Today, Marian is a national doctoral research university serving approximately 5,000 students throughout the academic year.

“During Elsener’s tenure, Marian College became Marian University; launched a national championship-winning football program; opened what is now the Tom and Julie Wood College of Osteopathic Medicine, Indiana’s first new medical school in more than a century; established the Fred S. Klipsch Educators College and E. S. Witchger School of Engineering; expanded its Indianapolis campus and its footprint through the Marian University Plymouth, Ind., location and the nursing site in Nashville, Tenn.”

Reflecting on that transformation through the years, Elsener viewed the university’s growth with a sense of gratitude and pride for him and his wife, Beth.

“When Beth and I look back over these past 25 years, what we feel more than anything is gratitude,” he said. “God has blessed this university beyond anything we could have imagined. But I also believe with all my heart that Marian’s best days and greatest impact lie ahead.”

Elsener emphasized that the transition is not a retirement. Following the 2026-27 academic year and President’s Dinner, he plans to take a sabbatical before becoming the university’s president emeritus.

“I’m not retiring from Marian’s mission,” Elsener said. “My role is changing. I have complete faith in Ken’s leadership and that his service as president will take Marian University to heights beyond our imagination.”

Britt, who earned a doctorate in educational leadership at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., joined Marian in 2013 and has served in multiple senior leadership roles.

“I am deeply humbled by the confidence the board has placed in me, and I am extraordinarily grateful to Dan for his leadership, friendship and example,” Britt said. “I have had the privilege of helping build Marian alongside Dan and some remarkable people for the past 13 years. I know where we have been. I know what makes this place special. And I could not be more excited about where we are going.”

Britt also noted that Marian’s future under his leadership will continue to reflect and embrace the university’s Catholic values and its founding by the Oldenburg Franciscan sisters.

“Our Catholic identity will remain at the center of who we are, and our Franciscan values will continue to guide us,” Britt said. “We will honor everything that has been built while continuing to dream boldly about what a great Catholic university can accomplish over the next 25 years.”
 

(For more information about Marian University in Indianapolis, visit marian.edu.) †