Dr. Robert K. McMahan, Ph.D.

Dr. Robert K. McMahan, Ph.D. 

To say that Dr. McMahan is accomplished would be to understate the fact by magnitudes of order. He enjoyed a startling diverse and impactful career prior to assuming the helm as Flint’s Kettering University 7th President. 

He received dual Bachelors’ Degrees in Physics and in the History of Art from Duke University, a Ph.D. in Physics from Dartmouth, and completed postdoctoral studies at the Harvard University - Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory Center for Astrophysics under the mentorship of Mac Arthur Fellow Margaret Geller. He has completed executive leadership programs at the Harvard Kennedy School and the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Prior to his work with the Governor, he was a Senior Technology Strategist and Venture Capitalist for In-Q-Tel, a private venture capital organization funded by the CIA, where he was responsible for developing a technology investment strategy for the intelligence community

Dr. McMahan participated in research that led to the cosmological discoveries of the “Great Attractor,” as well as the “bubble and void” structure of the universe and the “Great Wall,” the latter of which at the time of discovery was the largest known structure in the universe. These are now foundational elements of modern dark matter theory.  

He helped usher Kettering through the difficult challenges of navigating the changing economic landscape in Flint, and simultaneously managed to help improve the neighborhood Kettering is nestled in, increase the schools footprint, and led the preservation of a Flint landmark when Kettering assumed control of Atwood Stadium. Moreover, in an era when higher education is being challenged to prepare students for the fast changing needs of the world of work and business, Kettering University was ranked first in the country in career preparation in a 2017 survey conducted by The Wall Street Journal. 

Click to listen to the Fish and the Flint Chronicles interview with Dr. Robert K. McMahan, Ph.D.