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Printer-Friendly Mode20 years later, Gilbertson continues to look forward
August 31, 2009 —
Dr. Eric Gilbertson has seen a lot of changes at SVSU in his 20 years as University president, but he says he doesn’t like to dwell on them.
The University’s Board of Control passed a resolution of appreciation August 17 for Gilbertson’s two decades of service. Gilbertson is the longest-serving president in the University’s history, and the longest-serving university president in Michigan today.
“I’m honored by the resolution, but now is not a time to look backward,” Gilbertson said. “Classes are starting Monday, and it’s time to look forward.”
The University today is quite different than what Gilbertson first saw in the fall of 1989. Basil Clark, professor of English, remembers when Curtiss Hall and Groening Commons didn’t exist, along with the majority of on-campus living centers.
“There is no question that President Gilbertson has overseen more growth than there had been at any other time in the campus’s history,” said Clark, a 35-year veteran of the University.
Enrollment, too, has grown, from about 6,000 students in 1989 to more than 10,200 today. The increase includes a rise in the number of international students, from less than 50 to 430 individuals now representing 40 nations.
International programs have long been one of the president’s passions, Clark said.
Gilbertson made that clear during his annual orientation remarks to faculty and staff Thursday afternoon. He promoted the University’s studyabroad programs with the words of Mark Twain: “‘Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindedness,’” he said.
“That’s why at no time has it been more important.”
In his speech, he also discussed the campus’s most recent developments, including the completion of Living Center Southwest, the University Health Center and the additions to the Arbury Fine Arts Center.
Work continues on the new College of Health and Human Services building, which is expected to be ready for classes next fall.
“Even during bad times we simply must invest in the future of the University,” said Gilbertson. “Perhaps especially during bad times.”
The completion of these recruitment and construction projects signal the achievement of long-standing institutional goals, and Gilbertson has been key to their success, Clark said.
“He has been very successful at recruiting and cultivating relationships with faculty and with students,” Clark said. “He’s very well liked.” Still, Gilbertson was reluctant to reflect on his past or his accomplishments here.
“New students couldn’t care less about what’s been going on for the past 20 years,” he said. “They want to know what’s going on now, and for the next four or five years. And that’s what I’m thinking about, too.”