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Communications Director Steve Dennie conducted an “exit interview” with Dr. G. Blair Dowden, who at the end of May 2013 concludes 22 years as Huntington University president. Dr. Dowden responded to questions about his early years at HU, student life, changes in the world of academia, the denomination, and his successor, Dr. Sherilyn Emberton. The interview was sent out as an edition of the Connect e-letter. You can also read it online here.
Dr. G. Blair Dowden and wife Chris walking in their last HU Commencement.
At HU Commencement.
2013 Nursing graduates
Huntington University honored 317 graduates and four honorary degree recipients on Saturday, May 18, during Commencement ceremonies. The degrees included:
Commencement speaker Mike Packnett, Parkview Health president and CEO, challenged students to use “Your Secret Weapon” by having the mind of Christ in all things.
Four individuals were also awarded honorary doctorates.
Dr. G. Blair and Chris Dowden walking in their final Huntington University Commencement on May 18, 2013.
by Steve Dennie (left), Communications Director
Dr. G. Blair Dowden is retiring at the end of May 2013 after 22 years as president of Huntington University. It’s been a great run. Under his leadership, enrollment has doubled and the endowment has tripled. A number of buildings have been renovated or built from scratch. Exciting programs have been launched, including Digital Media Arts, Nursing, and several master’s programs. There is a branch campus in Fort Wayne, and an upcoming one in Peoria, Ariz. Huntington’s stature as a quality institution has soared.
Dr. Dowden has led the university far, and has led it well. In the process, our denominational college has remained solidly evangelical. I’ve noticed over the years that people scrutinize Christian colleges for signs of “going liberal.” I have no concerns about that with Huntington. A university, with its emphasis on academic freedom and investigating the full range of ideas and theories (and satisfying accreditation needs), will inevitably encounter tension living in partnership with a church organization that values absolute truth. But Dr. Dowden has served the needs of both the college and the denomination with integrity and the best of intentions, and from a heart devoted to Jesus Christ.
We have been privileged to have Dr. Dowden, and his wife Chris, leading our college for all of these years.
On May 15, I sat down with Dr. Dowden for an exit interview of sorts.
We were given good advice to take a sabbatical. We’ll spend six months at our lake cottage in Indiana, and do some traveling. We’re going to the Holy Land in October with Denny Miller, and will probably do some other traveling. We’re thinking of taking two weeks on Route 66 and see where it leads. We’ve rented a place in Venice, Fla., for three months, starting in mid-January of 2014.
And then it’s a matter of discerning where God can use our experience and gifts. I’ve received some inquiries about various things, but I respond, “Why don’t you contact me in December, and then we can talk.” So that’s where we’re headed.
Bishop C. Ray Miller (left) conducting the inauguration of Dr. Dowden in 1991 (kneeling, with wife Chris).
It was intimidating to some extent, knowing how successful Eugene was. He was a very good president, and he really changed the course of Huntington, as did the contributions of Orville and Ruth Merillat. I was fortunate to inherit all of that. But it was a little scary to think I’m following a very successful leader.
I knew Gene Habecker before I became president. He actually contacted me and asked me to consider coming. The year before, Gene came to Houghton College, where I had been serving, and did a presentation on the future of higher education. I was part of a faculty panel that responded to his address. Little did I know that he would call me and suggest I apply.
Gene was a fantastic former president, and a great encouragement to me. One of the best practices for a former president is to get away. Gene and Mary Lou were that way. He sent me notes of congratulations, and was always there if I had questions or needed something, but he was never intrusive. He did not hold on to relationships. When he came back to campus, he always called first to let me know he was here. He has been a good friend over the years.
Dewitt and Evelyn Baker were super. When I first came, Dewitt was president emeritus, and he was still involved in contacting alumni. He contacted alumni in Florida during the winter and generated a large group, 70-100, for gatherings there. DeWitt always had a kind word, never a criticism. Since his death in 2000, Evelyn has been so gracious and kind.
Norris Friesen (left) with Huntington University students.
On May 6, the Huntington University Joe Mertz Center for Volunteer Service was be renamed the Friesen Center for Volunteer Service in honor of Dr. Norris Friesen (right). Friesen came to the university in 1985 as dean of student services, became vice president for student development in 1993, and in 2003 was named vice president and dean of the university.
The Joe Mertz Center was founded in 1992. This student-directed organization mobilizes students, faculty, and staff to give over 10,000 hours of labor each year in service to others. Over 70% of resident students are involved in some form of volunteer service.
Essie Kauffman and Markus Clancy.
Each year, Huntington University students donate thousands of hours to serve in the community. Two such students were given the PACE Servant Leadership Award, which recognizes students who have demonstrated leadership in community and ministry service.
The two recipients:
The awards were given at the May 2 Joe Mertz Center for Volunteer Service Appreciation Banquet. Both students received a $1,000–$750 toward academics, and $250 to any charity they choose.
Here is a short news report by HTV, the student-run Huntington University TV station, about the section of Dr. Sherilyn Emberton as the new university president.
Blair Caldwell, a student reporter with HTV, the Huntington University student-run TV station, conducted this short interview with Dr. Sherilyn Emberton, who will become the new college president on June 1.
Last week, the Huntington University board of trustees approved launching graduate-level–both masters and doctorate–programs in occupational therapy as early as fall of 2014. This will be the university’s first doctorate-level degree.
The graduate programs will be located within the new Life Science Education and Research Consortium of Northeast Indiana at the Parkview Randallia campus in Fort Wayne. The programs will build on Huntington’s undergraduate degrees in exercise science, nursing, and allied health.
“Occupational therapy is an in-demand field which is expected to continue to grow in coming years,” said Dr. Ann McPherren, senior vice president for strategy. “This is an exciting opportunity for the university to build on the already strong health careers in the Fort Wayne area”
The program has received a high-level of interest, with more than 50 inquiries from prospective students.
Through the consortium, the university is currently offering bachelor’s degree programs in human resource management, not-for-profit leadership, and RN to BSN degree completion, as well as a Master of Counseling program.
The Huntington University Board of Trustees approved a proposal to create a campus in Peoria, Ariz. (the greater Phoenix area). The city of Peoria will vote on it later this spring. The campus could open as early as spring of 2014.
In October 2012, Huntington University entered into a 180-day exclusive negotiating agreement with the Peoria to begin talks of what a potential branch campus could mean for both entities. Since then, university administrators have met with city officials to determine location, programs, and funding sources.
The campus would feature programs such as digital media arts, exercise science, nursing, ministry and missions, education, and counseling psychology. Two other institutions, Trine University of Angola, Ind., and St. Scholastica College of Duluth, Minn., are also planning to offer degree programs in Peoria. Each university would offer different academic majors to students based on its unique institutional strengths.
The Huntington campus will look to attract students who are seeking a Christ-centered, professionally sound, and community connected education. The campus will also offer the opportunity for students at the Huntington campus to study in Arizona for full semesters or for shorter term classes.
Bishop Phil and Sandy Whipple at a Huntington University reception for Dr. Sherilyn Emberton.
“Dr. Emberton will be a very good president for us,” Bishop Phil Whipple said about Dr. Sherilyn Emberton, the next president of Huntington University.
“She’s down to earth, and puts people at ease. I think she will relate to anyone in our churches. And yet, she has the pedigree in education that will be a great attraction to faculty.”
Bishop Whipple was part of the 14-member Presidential Advisory Task Force which conducted most of the search process. The group included nine Board of Trustees members and five faculty or staff of the university. One other United Brethren minister was part of that group: Gary Dilley, senior pastor of College Park UB church in Huntington, Ind. Former bishop Paul Hirschy coordinated prayer efforts for the process.
Dr. Emberton speaking at the introductory press conference on Friday afternoon, April 26.
They hired Carter-Baldwin Executive Search, a firm which has helped fill positions at other Christian colleges as well as at major corporations. The managing partner, Price Harding, spearheaded the search efforts.
“Price Harding did a remarkable job,” said Bishop Whipple. “He’s a first-class Christian gentlemen who led us well in the whole search process. It made it easy for the team to wade through a lot of information.
“We ended up actually looking at 28 of the resumes that came in. We whittled them down to ten persons. Price Harding had face-to-face conversations with those ten persons and sent us his notes. With that information, we got it down to four persons.”
The task force members spent two days in Indianapolis interviewing the four finalists, two persons each day.
“I was really wowed by Dr. Emberton in Indianapolis,” said Bishop Whipple. “We saw two people the first day, and she stood out—and continued to stand out—as a star. She speaks with a lot of confidence, and has clear leadership gifts. I wondered how I would feel about her when I saw her again, but there was no change. She was the same kind of person I saw in Indianapolis.
“I liked the other candidates, but I really had a sense that God was orchestrating something unique and special with what she brings to the table. She’s currently in a denominational school and sees value in that. She is excited about becoming part of the United Brethren church.”
Those 14 persons did an initial vote, and 13 of them identified Dr. Emberton as their first choice. The other person listed her second, but was perfectly willing to go along with the group. So when the advisory task force gave their final vote, it was unanimous.
And when the Board of Trustees voted on April 26, it, too, was unanimous.
