Former Northeastern Provost David Madigan to lead academic affairs at USC

Former Northeastern Provost David Madigan to lead academic affairs at USC Former Northeastern Provost David Madigan to lead academic affairs at USC Blue Tiernan, deputy campus editor October 13, 2026 Val O’Neill David Madigan addresses the class of 2024 during the commencement ceremony May 5, 2024. Madigan was the Northeastern University provost for five years, stepping down in 2025. File photo by Val O’Neill. David Madigan, who stepped down as Northeastern’s provost in June 2025, will assume the role of provost and executive vice president for academic affairs at the University of Southern California Oct. 13. The University of Southern California, or USC, Provost Search Committee unanimously recommended him for the position, according to USC Today’s Sept. 30 announcement. Madigan will replace Andrew Guzman, who announced he would step down in May after two years in the role. Madigan left his post at Northeastern after five years as provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. Beth Winkelstein held the role for less than one year, but quietly vacated the position in May. The university appointed Tom Sheahan, the executive vice provost, as interim provost for the next two years.  Northeastern President Joseph E. Aoun, who served as a dean at USC before moving to Boston to lead Northeastern, said,“David Madigan is an exceptional academic leader. He will bring his deep commitment to students and faculty to USC, along with an innovative mindset and a willingness to experiment. The Trojan Family will benefit from his unparalleled experience and integrity.”  During his time at Northeastern, Madigan oversaw the university’s academic and research enterprise. He helped steer the university through the COVID-19 pandemic, the 48-hour pro-Palestinian encampment in 2024 and federal funding cuts under President Donald Trump.  He came to Northeastern in 2020 after 12 years at Columbia University, where he served as executive vice president for arts and sciences and dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. After vacating the role of provost, Madigan, who is a statistician by training, took on a research role.  At USC, he will be a professor of data sciences and operations in the Marshall School of Business and will have appointments in the Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, which Aoun previously led, and the Keck School of Medicine, according to the Daily Trojan. 0 Like This Story Share on Facebook Share on X Email this Story Print this Story Tags: administration About the Contributors Blue Tiernan, Deputy Campus Editor Blue Tiernan is a third-year journalism and political science combined major. They have been with The News since fall 2025, and are a deputy campus editor, having previously served on news staff as a beat writer for labor unions in the Northeastern community. They’re looking forward to continuing to report on exciting events at Northeastern and you can follow them on X or Instagram @bluetiernan. Val O’Neill, Managing Editor Val O’Neill is a fourth-year journalism major with a minor in photography and one of the managing editors. She has previously been a deputy campus editor, staff writer and staff photographer and is excited to bring new ideas and continue her participation on The News. You can follow her on X at @vqon717. More to Discover More in Administration Two decades of leadership in one hour: Here’s what we learned from the Aoun interview After 20 years of leading Northeastern, Aoun says he’s not close to done President Aoun’s total compensation exceeds $3 million, reports show Northeastern appoints Mark Williams as dean of College of Science Northeastern taps Vanderbilt administrator Brett Sweet as next chief financial officer Aoun announces Tom Sheahan as interim provost following Winkelstein’s departure