UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Elizabeth Wright, regional chancellor for Penn State Hazleton, Scranton and Wilkes-Barre, will step down from her role as leader of the University’s three northeast Commonwealth Campuses, effective Aug. 31. She will remain at Penn State as associate professor of English. Durell Johnson, chief academic officer at Penn State Scranton, will serve as interim regional chancellor beginning Sept. 1.
Wright was appointed regional chancellor in 2024 after serving two years as chancellor of the Hazleton campus. In her time as regional chancellor, she played a pivotal role in strengthening academic programs, fostering collaboration across the three campuses, and aligning resources to support students, faculty and staff. She also co-chaired Penn State’s Academic Portfolio and Program Review (APPR) and served on the Commonwealth Campus recommendation workgroup convened last spring by President Neeli Bendapudi.
“Liz has led with strategic vision and heart during a period of profound transition,” said Renata Engel, interim vice president for Commonwealth Campuses and executive chancellor, who served alongside Wright as APPR co-chair. “Without fail, she has been a leader who puts people first — especially our students — approaching her work with creativity, insight and tireless dedication. While we will miss her leadership, her deep care for the campuses she serves and her commitment to advancing Penn State’s mission have made a lasting difference, one that will continue as she returns to the faculty.”
Wright began her Penn State Hazleton career in 2000 as an instructor in English and later advanced to associate professor. She was appointed director of academic affairs at the campus in 2012 and associate dean of academic affairs in the Office of the Vice President for Commonwealth Campuses in 2019. Over the course of her career, Wright has been recognized with multiple awards for teaching, scholarship and service, and her work has appeared in numerous books and journals.
In the community, Wright helped establish a partnership with Amazon to offer employees college tuition through the company’s Career Choice program and extended outreach to the area business community through visits and walk-the-block events. She connected with area high school students in the Hazleton Integration Project’s College Prep program, teaching them to ski at Jack Frost and Big Boulder through Vail Resorts’ Epic for Everyone program. Currently, Wright serves on the boards of Lehigh Valley Hospital — Hazleton, AllOne Charities, the Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce, and the Hazleton Area Public Library, to name a few.
“I am incredibly grateful to the faculty, staff, students and loyal partners in the northeast — and to my colleagues across Penn State — for their support, collaboration and passionate dedication,” Wright said. “Together, we’ve accomplished so much through initiatives like the Pasco L. Schiavo Scholars Program, our partnership with the Hazleton Area School District, and the creation of out-of-classroom experiences such as the student garden, greenhouse and apiary in Scranton. In this next chapter, I look forward to returning to what first inspired me to work in higher education: the opportunity to work side by side with students every day.”
Wright holds a doctoral and master’s degree in English language and literature from the University of New Mexico and a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of New Hampshire.