The search will be "daunting," Flaherty said yesterday, listing the job description: "leading a major university, an academic health center ... from the Applied Physics Laboratory to the humanities to music to international affairs to public health, the School of Medicine."
Brody's resume seemed tailor-made for Hopkins.
Born in Stockton, Calif., he studied electrical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He then earned a doctorate in electrical engineering and a medical degree at Stanford University.
From 1977 to 1986, he was a professor of radiology and electrical engineering at Stanford.
Brody's first stint at Hopkins was from 1987 to 1994, when he held simultaneous faculty positions in radiology, biomedical engineering, and electrical and computer engineering. He was also the hospital's chief radiologist.
After two years as a provost at the University of Minnesota, Brody returned to Hopkins as its 13th president on Sept. 1, 1996.
Brody's tenure has been relatively smooth, though it was also marked by tragedy.
In 2001, federal regulators suspended human medical research at Hopkins for three days after the death of a patient in an asthma study.
In 2004 and 2005, two undergraduates were killed by intruders in their off-campus homes. Hopkins has boosted its security efforts in Charles Village, and university officials say crime on and off campus has decreased.
The deaths of Christopher B. Elser and Linda Trinh were Brody's "lowest moment."
"I'll forever remember those two students," he said, his lower lip quivering. "I wish that I could have done something to prevent those. ... I'll probably ask myself that a lot."
But his tenure has been marked with more high points than low points. He has overseen a significant expansion of the university's global health efforts and established the Hopkins-Nanjing Center for Chinese and American Studies in China. He recently learned Chinese so that he could give a speech there.
"Henry Kissinger, a very close friend of mine, was there," said New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, a Hopkins alumnus and major donor. "He said it was amazing."
Brody and his wife, Wendy, resumed the tradition of Hopkins presidents living on campus. In an effort to be part of campus life, they welcomed students by riding around the freshman dorms on in-line skates or scooters. In 2003, they traded up to Segway Personal Transporters.
