Drew Hess Named Associate Provost for Academic Development and Operations at W&L
Drew HessWashington and Lee University has named Drew Hess associate provost for academic development and operations. Hess, the Ehrick Kilner Haight Sr. Term Professor of Business Administration, has served as W&L’s interim associate provost since July 2025.
W&L Provost Lena Hill announced Hess’s appointment, which is effective on January 1, 2026.
As associate provost, Hess serves on the provost’s leadership team and supports research and development opportunities across the university. He oversees the Center for International Education, the Office of the Registrar, and the Office of Fellowships and Student Summer Research and manages the university’s budgets and space allocation. He also directs academic advising, manages faculty award applications, and serves as the primary liaison for research compliance and strategic initiatives.
“I am delighted to continue in the role of associate provost at Washington and Lee,” said Hess. “Over the past six months, I’ve valued the opportunity to work with faculty, staff, and students to strengthen the academic experience by advancing improvements to course and class block scheduling and other efforts that support a clear, fair, and student-centered academic program. Looking ahead, I am excited to build on this progress, including work to expand high-impact learning opportunities through the Full W&L Experience and related initiatives. I’m grateful for Provost Lena Hill’s steady support and partnership in this work.”
In addition to his duties as professor, Hess is a member of the core faculty in Environmental Studies and an affiliate faculty member in Poverty and Human Capability Studies. He served for four years as associate head of the Business Administration Department. He is currently chair of the International Education Committee and the faculty athletic mentor for the baseball team. He has also served on the Faculty Executive Committee, the Employee Benefits Committee, the Investment Committee, the University Athletics Committee, the University Sustainability Committee, and as a faculty representative to the Board of Trustees.
He came to W&L in 2014, having taught previously at the McIntire School of Commerce at the University of Virginia. He holds a B.A. in business administration from W&L, an M.B.A. from Texas A&M University, and a Ph.D. in Strategic Management from the Georgia Institute of Technology. Before returning to graduate school, he worked in banking at Fleet National Bank and Silicon Valley Bank in Boston.
Hess researches and teaches in the areas of social innovation, strategy, and international business. His research has appeared in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Strategic Management Journal, Organization Science, IEEE – Transactions on Engineering Management, MIT Sloan Management Review, and The Wall Street Journal. Based on his research, he was awarded the 2008 Alfred P. Sloan Foundation’s Industry Studies Award for the best paper prize. While working toward his Ph.D., Professor Hess was also awarded a Kauffman Foundation Dissertation Fellowship.
“Drew has done an exceptional job as interim associate provost over the last few months, advancing our work in critical areas including the Full W&L Experience, capital budgeting, and new technology to improve key operations in academic affairs,” said Hill. “I am thrilled that he has agreed to stay on in this role and look forward to continued collaboration with him as part of our leadership team.”
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