George Mason U.’s President Is Sole Finalist for Georgia Tech Leader

If chosen for the new gig, this college president would navigate familiar territory: Moving a campus forward after previously signed contracts sparked outrage.

Ángel Cabrera, George Mason University’s president, has been named the sole finalist for the Georgia Institute of Technology presidency, one year after the Atlanta powerhouse began reckoning with an ethics scandal that pushed out several administrators.

In one case, the executive vice president for administration and finance had not properly disclosed his paid relationship with a German technology company. The administrator pressured his subordinates to select the company’s services during bidding, the university found. In another, an investigation found that the chief information officer had funneled business to a vendor with whom he had a romantic relationship.

At George Mason, Cabrera faced a backlash from the faculty and alumni after the university released contracts from between 2003 and 2011 that showed that the Koch Foundation had held the ability to choose faculty members funded by its money and to influence their work.

Those contracts predated Cabrera’s presidency. Still, he urged a review of all active donor agreements supporting George Mason professors “to ensure that they do not grant donors undue influence in academic matters.”

Cabrera, president of George Mason since 2012, has deep ties to Georgia Tech, where he earned his Ph.D. and master’s degrees in cognitive science and psychology. His wife was his classmate there, and his son recently graduated from the institute. He also led its advisory board in 2011.

“It would be a privilege to lead such a great institution,” Cabrera said in a written statement provided by the University System of Georgia. He did not immediately respond to an interview request through a system spokeswoman.

Steve Wrigley, the system’s chancellor, and Don L. Waters, the Board of Regents chair, cited those ties in statements of support for Cabrera provided by the system.

“I look forward to the next step in this process and to ensuring Georgia Tech’s next president will continue moving this top-10 public institution forward,” Waters said.

The system’s board will formally decide on the position after five business days, a required delay, the statement said.

G.P. (Bud) Peterson, the current president, said in January that he planned to resign, adding that he felt the university had “turned a corner” after the revealed ethical lapses.

“I feel good about where we are and where we’re headed,” he said in an interview at the time.

Lindsay Ellis is a staff reporter. Follow her on Twitter @lindsayaellis, or email her at lindsay.ellis@chronicle.com.