Dr. Katia Passerini joined Gonzaga University as its 27th president on July 15, 2025, becoming the second layperson to serve in the role at the Jesuit institution since its founding in 1887.

President Passerini previously served as Seton Hall University provost and executive vice president (2020-2025) and spent a year as interim president. She also worked as a distinguished chair and dean at St. John’s University and as a professor of Management Information Systems and dean of the Honors College at the New Jersey Institute of Technology.

President Passerini’s academic expertise and research are rooted in information systems and management, and her research focuses on understanding macro-economic drivers of knowledge management, studying wireless broadband applications and industry trends, and computer-assisted learning and education.

President Passerini holds undergraduate degrees in political science (LUISS University, Italy) and economics (University of Rome II-Tor Vergata, Italy), an M.B.A. and Ph.D. from The George Washington University, and a Certificate in Business Project Management from New York University. She was a Fulbright Student Scholar and Fulbright Administrator Scholar, an Italian National Research Council Fellow (CNR), and received several funded scholarships, awards and grants.

President Passerini’s professional background also includes work outside higher education, including projects at Booz Allen Hamilton (now part of PriceWaterhouseCoopers) and the World Bank, where she focused on information technology projects in Europe, North America, and the South Pacific. A certified project management professional (PMP), she worked in the automotive and telecommunications industries.

President Passerini is married to Arturo Pagan, who works at the United Nations, and is a mother of three sons. She grew up in Rome, Italy, where education was always important in her family — both her parents started their careers as elementary school teachers.