wfn.org | Wittenberg President Resigns to Move to Washington College

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ELCA NEWS SERVICE

March 1, 2004

Wittenberg President Resigns to Move to Washington College
04-031-RB*/JB

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Dr. Baird Tipson, president of Wittenberg
University, Springfield, Ohio, announced Feb. 21 he has accepted
an appointment to serve as the 26th president of Washington
College, Chestertown, Md., effective July 1.
     Wittenberg University is one of 28 colleges and universities
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).  Washington
College, a 222-year-old liberal arts college, completed an eight-
month process that included a review of 135 nominees before
choosing Tipson, according a Wittenberg University news release.
Tipson will serve as Wittenberg University president through June
30.
     "It is with surprise and deep regret that we accept
President Tipson's decision to move to Washington College," said
Ingrid Stafford, chair, Wittenberg University board of directors.
"He has been an effective leader for Wittenberg University, and
we have accomplished significant improvement in our core academic
facilities and our financial resources through the 'Defining
Moments Campaign.' President Tipson has had great personal
commitment to the community of Springfield, which also serves to
strengthen the university."
      "President Tipson is a national and state leader in higher
education and has brought recognition to Wittenberg through that
leadership," Stafford continued,  "We wish him well in his new
endeavor, which allows him to be closer to family and take on new
challenges in his career."
     Throughout his nearly nine-year tenure as Wittenberg's 12th
president, Tipson led the university's efforts to provide a state-
of-the-art learning environment. Hollenbeck Hall, Wittenberg's
new home for the humanities, and the recently dedicated Barbara
Deer Kuss Science Center are examples of Tipson's technology
vision, the news release said.
     Under his direction, the university completed an ambitious
fund-raising campaign, the $75 million Defining Moments Campaign,
doubling its endowment, improving campus facilities and creating
new academic programs and endowed chairs. Tipson is also credited
with improving community relations and building a strong board of
trustees.
     "During my tenure I have made my best effort to apply my
particular blend of experience and talent to the task of making
Wittenberg an even stronger institution: stronger academically,
stronger financially, and an even better citizen in this
community," Tipson said. "I believe the university is stronger
than it was when I arrived in 1995 and that the groundwork is
laid for its continued improvement. A new president, with a
different blend of experience and talent, can foster that
improvement. The heart of Wittenberg -- its faculty, staff,
alumni, students and friends -- deserves nothing less."
     Originally from the East Coast, Tipson and his wife, Sarah,
have two grown children, parents and other family members who
reside in that part of the United States.
     "It will not be easy for us to leave because we both love
Wittenberg, but Sarah and I have found it more and more difficult
to be separated from family by so many miles," Tipson said.
     A religion and history major at Princeton University,
Princeton, N.J., as an undergraduate, Tipson earned a doctorate
in religious studies at Yale University, New Haven, Conn., as
well as numerous prestigious fellowships, including the Woodrow
Wilson and Fulbright-Hays. Throughout his administrative career,
he has continued his teaching and scholarly pursuits as a
professor of religion whose research interests include
Puritanism, Calvinism and English Protestantism, the news release
said.
     The current president of the North Coast Athletic
Conference, Tipson has served as president of the Association of
Independent Colleges and Universities of Ohio and president of
the Southwestern Ohio Council on Higher Education. He has also
been an active spokesman at both the state and federal levels for
increased funding for education, frequently testifying before
legislative committees.
     In the Springfield community, Tipson is president of the
Springfield Symphony Orchestra board and is a member of the
Chamber of Commerce board. In addition, he has served on the
boards of the Community Leadership Academy and Aid for College
Opportunities and as a member of the Springfield City Schools
business advisory council.
     The university's board of directors will initiate a search
effort for Wittenberg's 13th president.
     "We expect that we can attract a leader whose vision,
education and experience can propel this nationally ranked
institution even higher on the liberal arts landscape," Stafford
said. "We will mount an inclusive process to help us identify new
leadership for Wittenberg and will strive to complete our search
within several months."
-- -- --
     Information about Wittenberg University is at
http://www.wittenberg.edu/ on the Web.

     * Rajean Blomquist is director of public relations at
Wittenberg University.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or news@elca.org
http://www.elca.org/news