Andrew Forsyth was appointed as vice president and secretary to the BU Board of Trustees on Monday, August 4. Forsyth, previously at Yale University, will assume the role on August 18. Photo courtesy of Forsyth

University News

Boston University Appoints New Full-Time Board of Trustees Vice President and Secretary

Andrew Forsyth, previously at Yale University, will start his role on August 18. He assumes a role previously held by Erika Geetter, who will continue serving as senior vice president and general counsel.

Boston University officials appointed a new vice president and secretary of the Board of Trustees on Monday, in a move aimed at strengthening institutional governance and providing dedicated support for the University’s mission and long-term direction, BU President Melissa Gilliam announced.

Members of the board voted to install Andrew Forsyth as vice president and secretary, effective August 18. Forsyth will assume the role previously held by Erika Geetter, who continues as senior vice president and general counsel and serves on Gilliam’s cabinet.

As vice president and secretary, Forsyth will also serve as a member of Gilliam’s cabinet and as a strategic advisor both to Gilliam and the board. He will lead the Office of the Trustees, manage board operations, and provide guidance on governance, structure, and institutional alignment.

“I’m excited to support Boston University’s mission alongside our senior volunteer leaders on the board, including Chair Ahmass Fakahany, and President Gilliam and her remarkable team,” Forsyth said. “In this challenging moment for higher education, I look forward to helping the University leverage its interdisciplinary strengths across 17 schools and colleges to respond to the world’s most pressing needs.” 

Forsyth joins BU from Yale University, where he served as chief of staff and associate dean of Yale College, partnering with other Yale leaders to improve strategic planning efforts, internal governance, cross-campus initiatives, AI innovation, and academic freedom.

Prior to that, he served as a strategic advisor for university life and as assistant secretary at Yale, working with trustees, faculty, and senior leaders on major initiatives that included inclusion efforts and long-term planning. 

“Beyond administration, Andrew brings valuable experience as a lecturer in humanities and religion, a nonprofit board president, and a published scholar,” Gilliam wrote in a message to University leaders. “His academic and civic leadership demonstrate a strong commitment to thoughtful dialogue, inclusive community-building, and mission-driven service, qualities essential to this role.” 

Forsyth received his PhD from Yale’s Department of Religious Studies in 2017, and previously studied in Scotland and at Harvard and University of Cambridge. He taught classes at Yale, including Tradition and Modernity—Ethics, Religion, Politics, Law, & Culture; Ethics of Forgiveness; and Law, Morality, and Religion. His book Common Law and Natural Law in America: From the Puritans to the Legal Realists (Cambridge University Press, 2019), was a joint winner of Heidelberg University’s Manfred Lautenschlaeger Award for Theological Promise. 

Beyond Yale, Forsyth is a gubernatorial appointee on the board of Connecticut Humanities—the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities—which connects people to the humanities through grants, partnerships, and collaborative programs. He is also president of the Elm Shakespeare Company, a theater company known for producing outstanding theater and youth educational programs in New Haven.

“I am deeply grateful to Erika Geetter for her dedicated service to the Board over the years,” Gilliam wrote, adding that she looks forward to the “insight and leadership [Forsyth] will bring as we continue to move forward together in our shared work.”