Saint Leo University is bracing to lose a longtime leader as president Arthur Kirk Jr. says he will retire after the 2014-15 academic year.
“While presidents often get credit for success, I am most proud of those at Saint Leo who embraced our mission, practiced our values, and pursued our vision, never fearing change, and working tirelessly to create a successful and sustainable university for the 21st century,” Kirk said, in a release. “The faculty, staff, trustees, alumni and friends have all been an integral part of what stands today as the third largest Catholic university in America.”
When Kirk first joined Saint Leo as its president, it was known as Saint Leo College, and had a student body of a little more than 7,400. However, in his nearly 18 years, that number has more than doubled to 16,450 students served by more than 240 faculty members, and offering 48 degree programs, from the 22 available when Kirk first started.
Kirk’s tenure also included the founding of the Center for Online Learning, which serves students all over the world. The physical campus itself continues to grow as well, with 11 new buildings over the years, and three renovated buildings, adding 70 acres and nearly 1 million square feet of new facilities.
Retiring was not an easy decision for Kirk, according to a release. And he said he would miss the students more than anything else.
“They stand as role models by practicing our core values while on campus, and then living them in the world as alumni,” Kirk said. “Saint Leo University is not about a president; it is the collective seeking each day to go from good to great. I will miss leading and working with such a wonderful collection of men and women with purpose.”
Saint Leo’s board of trustees already has contracted with an executive search firm, Witt/Keiffer, to help find a successor to Kirk. The search, they said, will be nationwide.
“The board of trustees takes seriously its role in finding the next leader for these dedicated people, and most importantly for our students,” said Cindy Brannen, the board’s chair, in a release. “The university can never repay Dr. Kirk for all he has done at Saint Leo, but we will start by working diligently to appoint a president who shares the university’s commitment to its mission, values and vision, and embraces his legacy of hard work and dedication.”
Kirk became the eighth president of Saint Leo in 1997 after serving as president of Keuka College in upstate New York. He had begun his administrative career at Kean University in New Jersey where he served as assistant director of the division of college development, and director of alumni affairs. He also served as director of development and planning for Raritan Valley Community College in New Jersey, and directed the college’s off-campus, non-credit and curriculum development programs.
Kirk moved on to become the executive vice president and chief financial officer of College Misericordia in northeastern Pennsylvania, before getting the nod to lead Keuka College in 1984.
He received his bachelor’s degree and his master’s degree in administration from Kean University. He earned his doctorate from Rutgers University, writing his dissertation on small college survival strategies.
