What to Know
- Temple University says president JoAnne A. Epps died after falling ill on stage during a memorial service. She was 72.
- Board chairman Mitchell Morgan says he has no words to "describe the gravity and sadness of this loss.”
- Morgan described Epps as a devoted servant and friend who represented the best parts of Temple. He says she spent nearly 40 years serving the university.
JoAnne Epps, the president of Temple University, has died after falling ill during a memorial service Tuesday afternoon, the school announced.
Epps, 72, was attending a memorial event for historian and author Charles L. Blockson. During the event, she became ill, a school spokesperson said.
Epps was taken to Temple University Hospital where she was pronounced dead around 3:15 p.m. Officials have not yet revealed a cause of death.
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"This is a tragic loss, but we know that JoAnne passed away doing something that she loved with her family there, and friends, and our Temple Community," Temple University Provost Gregory Mandel said at a news conference.
"There are no words that can describe the gravity and sadness of this loss," Mitchell L. Morgan, the Chair of Temple University's Board of Trustees wrote in a statement to the Temple community. "President Epps was a devoted servant and friend who represented the best parts of Temple. She spent nearly 40 years of her life serving this university, and it goes without saying her loss will reverberate through the community for years to come."
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Epps was named the acting president of Temple University in April of this year.
She taught at the school for more than 30 years and was previously the Senior advisor to the university president. She was also the Dean of Temple Law School from July 2008 until being appointed as Executive Vice President and Provost of Temple University in July 2016.
Outside of Temple, Epps served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Philadelphia and Deputy City Attorney in Los Angeles.
A native of Cheltenham, Pennsylvania, Epps was awarded a 2015 Spirit of Excellence Award by the American Bar Association, the 2015 M. Ashley Dickerson Award by the National Association of Women Lawyers, and the 2014 Justice Sonia Sotomayor Diversity Award by the Philadelphia Bar Association.
She was a graduate of Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. The university shared the impact of her loss on social media.
Epps became the acting president after Jason Wingard resigned as the school's president. The Board of Trustees accepted his resignation which went into effect on March 31.
A vigil for Epps will be held at Temple University's bell tower on Wednesday at noon.
Temple has not yet determined who will replace Epps as the school's acting president. The Board of Trustees will meet on Wednesday and decide a path forward.
EDITOR'S NOTE: A member of Temple University's Board of Trustees shared a message with the Temple community that stated the board would formally remove the "acting" notation from JoAnne Epps title and recognize her as the 13th president of the university on Oct. 10.
