Rich is an astronomer and emeritus faculty member at the University of Chicago. He served as the Director of Yerkes Observatory in the 1980s and 90s, is the co-founder of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS), and has been the Director of the Dark Energy Survey (DES) with an appointment at Fermilab since 2018. He and his wife Deborah Bekken live in Chicago.
“I am very pleased to help advance a vision of Yerkes as a place for learning and creativity across the arts and the sciences. Compared to other observatories, Yerkes is completely unique in so many ways. It offers immense potential for the local community and far beyond.”