Anthony Monaco to Be Inaugurated as Tufts University President Today

Though he's been serving as its president since the summer, Tufts University will make it official this afternoon by inaugurating Anthony Monaco.

Monaco, former pro-vice-chancellor for planning and resources at the University of Oxford, will be honored in a ceremony at Tufts at 2 p.m. this afternoon.

A Delaware native, Monaco had been at Oxford University for the last 20 years, most recently serving as pro-vice-chancellor for planning and resources since 2007.

A well-known scientific researchers, as a neuroscientist Monaco identified the first gene specifically involved in human speech and language.

Monaco succeeded current President Lawrence Bacow who stepped down shortly after the end of the 2010-2011 academic year. Bacow announced in February 2010 that he would step down next year after 10 years as president.

The new president will have the task of maintaining and growing the school's endowment, which currently stands at about $1.26 billion.

The ceremony starts at 2:00 p.m. on the residential quad of the Medford/Somerville campus, speakers will include Shirley Tilghman, president of Princeton University, and Sally Shuttleworth, professor of modern literature at Oxford.