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Sunday, Oct. 25, 2009

Transylvania president to retire in 2010

Charles L. Shearer, the longest serving president in Transylvania University’s history, announced Saturday that he will retire in June 2010 after 27 years on the job.

Shearer made the surprise announcement at the end of Saturday morning’s board of trustees meeting.

“I couldn’t ask for a better position in higher education for me. It’s been ideal,” Shearer said in an interview.But Shearer, who will turn 67 next month, said he felt it was time to step back.

He added that he hopes to stay involved with the university by teaching a microeconomics course — which he did before becoming an administrator and for two years while he served as Transy’s vice president for finance.

Before Saturday, Shearer had told just a few colleagues, including Board of Trustees Chairman William T. Young Jr., about his decision.

“Knowing Charles as I do, the school has really been his whole life,” said Young, whose father was chairman of Transy’s board when it hired Shearer in 1983. “I hate to lose him. He really has been a fantastic college president.”

Young said the board will start a national search for Shearer’s replacement.

Shearer, the 24th president of Kentucky’s oldest university, will leave a legacy of growth on campus. During his tenure, enrollment grew from 655 students to a high of 1,153 last year. The college constructed 11 buildings and two athletic fields. And the total value of the endowment tripled in that time — to $115 million.

“What he’s done has really set the foundation for a tremendous future,” said William Pollard, Transy’s vice president and dean of the college.

When appointed in 1983, Shearer steadied the university that had gone through three presidents in two years.

Shearer’s immediate predecessor, David G. Brown, resigned suddenly in July of that year after 10 months because he said he felt he had lost the confidence of the faculty and had made little progress in increasing enrollment.

Shearer, a Louisville native who was hired as in 1979 to balance Transy’s budget, won the faculty’s trust even when making tough financial decisions, said Nancy Wolsk, professor of art history.

“He was just very steady and really early on people saw results,” said Wolsk, who was a part-time professor at the time.

For instance, new student enrollment jumped 46 percent after Shearer’s first year as president and the total enrollment leapt from 655 students to about 725.

From there, Shearer worked with key donors, such as the Young family and Mary and Barry Bingham Sr., to establish several programs that helped build on the enrollment growth and bolster the faculty ranks.

In 1987, Transy used a $3 million gift from the Binghams — the former owners of the Louisville Courier-Journal — to start the Bingham Program for Excellence in Teaching. The program has provided supplemental pay to reward outstanding professors and in some cases start-up money to help lure new faculty.

And two other key funds, the David and Betty Jones Fund for Faculty Development and the Kenan Fund for Faculty and Student enrichment, have supported research efforts on campus and abroad.

In all, Transy’s total endowment grew from $32.8 million when Shearer took over to $115 million now — down from a high of $140 million in 2007 before the market took a downturn.

Shearer is a 1964 graduate of the University of Kentucky and later earned has master’s degree and doctorate from Michigan State University.

He spent 10 years in academia, including stints at Ferris State University and Albion College in Michigan, before coming to Transy in 1979.

His married to Susan Pulling of Albion. Their three sons, Todd, Mark and Scott are all Transylvania University graduates.

Shearer said in addition to being a proud Transylvania parent, he feels the same pride each year at graduation when he sees off that year’s senior class.

“You know they’re well-prepared, and you’re excited about what’s next for them,” he said.