R.H. Perry & Associates is featured in the Association of Governing Boards of Universities andColleges’ Presidential Search Guidelines and Directory.
View AGB’s RHPA Profile (PDF)
Our Experience
In 1974, Robert Hastings Perry established R. H. Perry & Associates (RHPA), a for-profit executive search firm, headquartered in Washington, DC. In addition to working with American colleges and universities, RHPA has conducted searches for a wide range of not-for-profit organizations including associations, foundations, the federal government, and advocacy groups as well as private sector corporations. To date, the firm has completed more than 500 assignments and has earned an excellent reputation. (For more information about R. H. Perry & Associates, visit www.rhperry.com)
Since 1987, RHPA's primary focus has been to assist institutions of higher education identify and select leadership. Over the years of conducting presidential searches for colleges and universities, Rob Perry and his consultant teams have reached the conclusion that leadership in higher education hinges on the effectiveness of the governing board. This is evidenced by the numerous times that a high priority for presidents-elect is "strengthen the governing board." Today's governing boards must lead their institutions in coping with changing economies, accelerating technologies, global trends and their effect on institutional finances, academics and admissions strategies. In addition, the board's composition must reflect a diversity of backgrounds and professional skills to govern with maximum efficiency.
To meet these needs, the R. H. Perry Foundation was established in 2007 as the first not-for-profit organization dedicated exclusively to providing the highest level of trustee search services to support college and university governing boards. These services are being targeted initially to independent institutions below the Tier I level.
The R. H. Perry Foundation is particularly concerned about those institutions at risk of failure. The situation is grave. In the ten year period from 1999 to 2008, 28 independent colleges and universities, nearly half of them with a religious affiliation, closed their doors. Most of these schools had enjoyed a long history of serving first generation college students as well as their local communities. We believe that an infusion of highly qualified, innovative trustees can provide the energy and know-how to turn around many institutions on the brink of financial failure.
RHPF Articles
Learn More About the R. H. Perry Foundation. To view the following articles, click on any of the titles listed below:
"Setting a New Standard in Trustee Search" by Robert H. Perry. Unpublished monograph (2008).
"Presidents Hear Tips on Choosing Trustees and an Offer on Recruiting Them"by Scott Carlson, The Chronicle of Higher Education, online daily report,(2008, January 9).
"The Art and Science of Reference Checking" by Robert H. Perry. Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, Trusteeship, (2004, November-December).
R. H. Perry & Associates "Off-Limits" Policy
to R. H. Perry Foundation Clients
As a means of honoring the Foundation's commitment to its not-for-profit status, R. H. Perry & Associates will not submit a proposal, nor will it accept an assignment from a current Foundation client. This "off-limits" policy will apply for the entire course of the Foundation's assignment with a client institution.