Challenges facing Bowling Green State University would be familiar to his experience, Dr. William Ruud,
president of Shippensburg University, said Thursday afternoon at Bowling Green State University.
Ruud is the first of three finalists to visit BGSU in the search for the school’s 11th president.
“We have had similar challenges in Pennsylvania with budgets, we have had lots of construction ,” Ruud
said. “BGSU is a bigger university with bigger challenges but I think I bring lots of experience.”
A native of North Dakota but no stranger to Northwest Ohio, Ruud spent several years at the University of
Toledo, has worked in the California higher education system and spent 12 years at Boise State, where he
was dean of the college of business and was that school’s first vice president of university
advancement. He also spent two years working in the office of Idaho governor on higher education issues.
Ruud has been at Shippensburg since 2007.
Ruud said BGSU needs to do a better job of telling its story, focusing on its Centers of Excellence and
programs like its industrial psychology and photochemical studies doctoral program. He would like to
place more emphasis on student-faculty research programs during an hour-long forum with faculty, staff
and students.
His two-day visit continues Friday with another series of meetings, including a visit to the BGSU
Firelands campus at Huron.
Ruud sees a need to teach entrepreneurship so that individuals can have the skills and confidence to work
for themselves, especially during economic downturns. He would promote STEM programs (science,
technology engineering and mathematics) and said Shippensburg is on the verge of adding an engineering
program.
Ruud said students need to be comfortable knowing about and traveling the world. “There are some people
who travel from Shippensburg to Philadelphia and think they are in a foreign country. We have to get
people comfortable about going to Canada, Europe and other places.”
Among questions Ruud fielded:
• Cutting costs: “My primary goals is jobs and benefits, saving as many as possible.” He said some jobs
may be left open but that approach often has long-term costs. “We’re a talented bunch of people. We can
find solutions.”
• General education: “Good requirements that are meaningful and practical. High school students ought to
take as much reading, writing and arithmetic as they can. Often they don’t get enough before they get to
college.”
• Personal involvement with students: “As much as the day allows. At Shippensburg I visit residence halls
at 10:30 p.m. I’m comfortable putting on a pair of jeans and sitting down in the union.”
• Promoting programs: “Get me the facts and data. Get alumni and community involved in promoting needs to
the governor. People need to plant the seed, to speak up.
• Firelands: “Two-year campuses are critical to our success. We have to make students who don’t come to
us begin their education feel comfortable. If someone comes back to school at 40, they aren’t going to
stay if they don’t get them the answers they need.”
• Town-gown: Relationship is good at Shippensburg. Both campus and city have a Common Ground Award, which
Ruud received the first year he was in town. “We walk downtown, buy locally and support the community
and its efforts.” Shippensburg has 8,500 students and the city has 7,500 residents.
Role of arts: “There are two windows to a university, athletics and the fine and performing arts. These
need to be promoted to get people involved who would not otherwise be engaged on campus.”
• Collective bargaining: California and Pennsylvania have collective bargaining, Idaho does not. There
are five bargaining units at Shippensburg. He advocates shared governance. While not speaking for or
against Senate Bill 5, which would end collectively bargaining in Ohio, Ruud said he would follow the
law.
• Fundraising: “BG needs to get in the game now. If we don’t we risk leaving some funds and friends at
other places.”
Additional candidates to be interviewed:
• Dr. Mary Ellen Mazey, provost and vice president for academic affairs, Auburn University, March 14,
3:30 p.m.
• Dr. Gary L. Miller, provost and vice president for academic affairs and research, Wichita State
University, March 16, 3:30 p.m.
Both will be in room 206 of the Bowen-Thompson Student Union.