Marvin Lee Pelton is being inducted into the North High Alumni Hall of Fame on Saturday, Oct 6th at 9:30 am in the North High Auditorium. Here are just a few of his accomplishments.

Congratulations to our outstanding classmate! 

Marvin “Lee” Pelton grew up in Wichita, Kansas, where he graduated from Wichita North High School in 1968. In 1974, Pelton graduated from Wichita State University where he earned a degree in English and psychology, graduating magna cum laude with a focus in 19th century British literature

 Pelton continued his academic career at Harvard University, where he earned a PhD in English literature with an academic focus on 19th-century British prose and poetry. He taught English and American literature at Harvard and served as senior tutor at Winthrop House. He later served on the Harvard Board of Overseers and as a vice-chair of its executive committee. After Harvard, Pelton served as dean of the college at Colgate University and Dartmouth College.

Lee Pelton is currently the 12th president of Emerson College in Boston. He is a nationally and internationally known speaker and writer on the value of a liberal education and the importance of leadership development, civic engagement, and diversity in higher education. He came to Emerson on July 1, 2011, after serving for 13 years as the president of Willamette University in Salem, Oregon.

Since arriving at Emerson, Pelton has outlined a bold vision for Emerson as the global hub for arts, communication and liberal arts. The College has begun to expand its academic footprint beyond its campuses in Boston, Los Angeles and the Netherlands by establishing Global Portals on several continents. Emerson’s Global Portals will partner with institutions abroad so that students without U.S. passports might matriculate to and graduate from Emerson through a variety of academic programs and disciplines.

Recently, he has established an ambitious plan to redevelop downtown Boston and strengthen Emerson’s sense of place and identity by animating the streetscape in the downtown core in order to inspire, embrace, and celebrate our Boston’s emerging diversity.

He also serves on the Board of Directors for the Boston Chamber of Commerce (executive committee), Boston Arts Academy Foundation Board (chair), the Boston Municipal Research Bureau, Facing History and Ourselves, WGBH and the Barr Foundation, one of the nation’s leading philanthropic organizations, with more than $1.8 billion in assets.  Marvin has three children.