UNM community leaders are concerned for the University's future and were saddened to hear that President Bill Gordon will retire this summer.
Gordon announced Thursday that he accepted the provost's job for fall at Wake Forrest University, his alma mater.
"I think it's a sad day for UNM, simple as that," Faculty Senate President John Geissman said. "At the same time, it doesn't surprise me. He's a very, very good person. And very good people move on to bigger and better things. You can't blame people for wanting to go back to their roots at all."
Student Regent Eric Anaya echoed Geissman, saying that Gordon was an excellent president and that he was disappointed to learn Gordon is leaving.
"He's been an outstanding mentor for me and was a great advocate for students," Anaya said. "It was tough hearing that he was leaving, but I can understand and support his decision."
Geissman said that Gordon's strength as a leader was positive for UNM but ultimately made him an enticing candidate for jobs elsewhere.
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"Let's face it, someone who's done a very good job, is very articulate and very bright quickly becomes part of the limelight in higher education," Geissman said. "Provosts and presidents move around a lot. In the context of all things being relative, he's done an incredible job under incredibly difficult circumstances and he had the opportunity to go home. Put it all together, and no one should be surprised he's leaving."
Geissman said the prospect of searching for a new president when he felt the University was about to turn a major corner in its constant battle for state funding by virtue of the upcoming gubernatorial election.
"My biggest fear is that we lose a lot of momentum with the state Legislature, but I hope that's not the case," he said. "I sincerely hope that it's not the case because all of us were looking forward to a major change in state government in the very near future and what Bill and his colleagues attempted to do was poised to become even more effective."
When reflecting on Gordon's tenure, Geissman said his biggest strength was his ability to serve as a statesman for UNM and truly connect with a variety of people.
"He's just outstanding and articulates issues very well," Geissman said. "It's clear he has generated a lot of respect in state Legislature. What more can you ask of a university president? He deals with tough issues in a very, very respectable way and a very open minded way."
Gordon earned that respect from Geissman and his peers during his 24-year-career at the University.
"He just made it clear that he cares about faculty, and there's no doubt that he cares about the students," Geissman said. "In that sense, he has done far more than a superlative job."
The Faculty Senate president pointed to improvement in faculty and staff salaries and the initiation of freshman seminars to improve undergraduate students' retention and graduation rates as some of the high points of Gordon's tenure.
"It's clear he will be missed," he said.
Anaya said he could not point to a single success that set Gordon apart, but added that it was consistency that made him such a strong leader.
"Overall, he did a great job and we are now a much stronger University after his tenure," he said. "During those times, he's had to deal with the hard things, and I think he has done a great job. I just hope that his vision for the future was so strong that the success he built will continue long after he's gone. That should be his legacy."
