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Drexel's board of trustees has called a meeting for 11 a.m., and the university's staff and officials have been invited to a 4:30 p.m. reception to meet the new president and his family, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported Tuesday.
Drexel trustee Richard Greenawalt will make a formal announcement at a news conference at 12:45 p.m., according to an Associated Press report.
However, Fry and officials at F&M were staying tight-lipped on the subject Tuesday.
A call to Fry's office was quickly redirected to the college press office, where Nancy Collins, vice president for college communications, said there had been no decision.
"There's been no vote there yet," she said.
Asked why Drexel would host a get-together for a new president without making a decision, Collins replied, "Why don't you ask them?"
Unfortunately, Niki Gianakaris, news bureau director at Drexel, did not return phone calls Tuesday afternoon, although she did send an e-mail confirmation of the news conference.
Dale Frey, leader of F&M's board of trustees, said the Philadelphia Inquirer might have jumped the gun with its report.
"All we know is Drexel is supposed to announce (today) who they've selected," Frey said in a brief telephone interview from his home in Weston, Conn.
"They haven't voted yet. Any report to the contrary is wrong."
Fry, 49, has been at F&M for nearly eight years.
Drexel officials announced in February that Fry was one of two finalists for the post. The person selected will replace longtime president Constantine Papadakis, who died last April of pulmonary complications stemming from lung cancer.
The 22,000-student university includes medical and business schools in downtown Philadelphia and a graduate campus in Sacramento, Calif. F&M, a liberal arts college, has 2,200 students.
Before coming to F&M, Fry was executive vice president and chief operating officer of the University of Pennsylvania from 1995 to 2002. During that time, he had a leadership role in a successful neighborhood revitalization program.
Fry has used similar strategies at F&M, the most visible of which has been the development of College Row, a mix of retail and student housing along Harrisburg Pike.
He has been a leader in the Northwest Gateway Project, the rehabilitation of the former Armstrong World Industries' Liberty Street flooring plant site, as well as the relocation of the Dillerville rail yard and the establishment of James Street Improvement District.
Lancaster Mayor Rick Gray said Tuesday that Fry has been a vital part of Lancaster's growth in recent years.
If Fry does go to Drexel, Gray said, "it will mean we've lost an important part of Lancaster. But Lancaster's loss is Philadelphia's gain. … I'm sure he'll do a great job for Drexel.
"He has certainly been a very positive force in the growth and development of the city," Gray said. "So many things have been accomplished through (Fry's) leadership. I will miss him both professionally and personally."
Thomas Beeman, who works with Fry both as president and chief executive officer of Lancaster General Health and as a trustee at F&M, said Fry "has made F&M a treasure for our community."
Fry and Beeman also worked together years ago at Penn, Beeman said.
"Drexel, which I think is an exceptional university, is very fortunate to get somebody of John's vision, his integrity, his ability to strategize," Beeman said. "It will be a perfect marriage with John's skill set."
Fry has "great insight into the issues," he said.
"For Lancaster General and the community, we're going to lose an extraordinary friend, someone who has worked diligently and untiringly, not only for the college … but for the fabric of the community," Beeman said.
"He'll be sorely missed, but I know his legacy will live on."
On campus, F&M during Fry's term built a new complex for the life science and philosophy departments, a coffeehouse and bookstore, a writer's house and an international center, and several dormitories were converted into academic/social/living quarters.
Fry replaced A. Richard Kneedler as F&M's president in 2002. His contract with the college expires in 2012.
He has a bachelor's degree in American civilization from Lafayette College in Easton and a master's in business administration from Stern School of Business.
According to the Inquirer, Fry earned $1.06 million in overall compensation in 2007-08, the most recent year available. The amount included $372,000 in deferred compensation that was accrued over his first five years as president.
Drexel is a national research university with a $420 million-plus endowment, a $791 million operating budget and more than 8,200 employees. The university is in the second year of a $500 million capital campaign.
