Originally from Norfolk, Virginia, Rawlings received his B.A. with honors in classics from Haverford College in 1966. From there he moved to Princeton University, where he received a Ph.D. in classics in 1970. After graduating from Princeton, he joined the faculty at the University of Colorado at Boulder, rising to full professor in 1980. Rawlings began his career in academic administration at Colorado, serving as chairman of the classics department and later as associate vice chancellor for instruction. In 1988, Rawlings was named president of the University of Iowa, a position he held until 1995. Rawlings is married to Elizabeth T. Rawlings, who is a professional translator with a master's degree in French from the University of North Carolina and a Master of Fine Arts degree in Literary Translation from the University of Iowa. She has translated and collaborated in translating a number of books from French to English, particularly in the fields of Greek and Latin literature and ancient history. The Rawlingses have four children and five grandchildren.. His eldest daughter, also Elizabeth, works for the Department of Homeland Security and his eldest son, Hunter Rawlings IV is New York Times Bestselling author and a former U.S. Marine Corps reconnaissance officer.
Rawlings came to Cornell University, becoming its 10th president, serving from 1995 until 2003. At Cornell, he was an effective fundraiser, presiding over several large capital campaigns. Rawlings created several new positions and programs to support undergraduate education, began the construction of several new dormitories, centralized the location of freshmen on campus, and promoted stronger undergraduate admissions standards. Rawlings began initiatives in certain areas of science and engineering that he considered especially important to the future, and began plans for Weill Hall, a large new life sciences building which houses the Weill Institute for Cell and Molecular Biology. He encouraged interdisciplinary exchanges in the humanities and social sciences. He also presided over an agreement to establish a branch of Cornell's medical school in Qatar, the Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar. While President of Cornell, Rawlings also held the rank of professor of classics, and continued to hold this position after he left the presidency. Notably, during the last two years of his presidency, he taught an undergraduate course in classics. At the same time, Rawlings faced criticism from many students and alumni leaders for his hands-off approach toward the student body and his focus on the business operations of Cornell. After the sudden resignation of his successor as president, Jeffrey Lehman, effective June 30, 2005, Rawlings agreed to reassume the presidency on an interim basis until a permanent replacement could be found. On January 21, 2006, David J. Skorton was announced as the next president of Cornell. Skorton took office on July 1. After the sudden passing of Skorton's successor, President Elizabeth Garrett, in March 2016, Rawlings was appointed interim president. He began on April 25, 2016.
Research
Rawlings' research focuses on Greek history and historiography. His scholarly publications include a book, The Structure of Thucydides' History.
