money 'Give 'em hell, Barbara': University of Iowa president shows she's an academic in formal ceremony
Barbara Wilson's presidential medallion caught the light off the stage where she stood on Friday.
The golden shine of the ceremonial piece worn by presidents of the University of Iowa matched the theme of the afternoon's event: to formally install her as the institution's 22nd president, seven months after she started the job. The event dually commemorated 175 years since Feb. 25, 1847 — the date of the university's founding.
"Today on the university's 175th birthday, I embrace my role as president with great pride and tremendous humility," Wilson told the crowd of about 100 people at Hancher Auditorium.
Wilson used the 25-minute speech to commemorate the impact of notable figures in university history like space researcher James Van Allen, George Gallup, the survey researcher, and women's sports pioneer Christine Grant. But she also took the stage to "set priorities that will be crucial for the next 175 years."
"I promise I won't be president during all those years, but I'm going to set the stage for the future," she added.
Among the topics Wilson mentioned are supporting students via investing in undergraduate research, additional financial aid and scholarship opportunities and mental health supports. Over the past year, UI has added eight mental health professionals to campus and established a 24/7 crisis mental health line.
On faculty, she highlighted an initiative new to her tenure that aims to draw more tenured faculty to work at the university. The program will provide $1.5 million to support research and teaching for three new hires per year over three years.
Wilson also said that supporting diversity is necessary to fulfilling university-wide goals.
"By definition, a university includes multiple perspectives, and fosters dialogue and understanding among differences. We can achieve that only by reflecting the diversity among the people who make up our communities," Wilson said.
Wilson has served as president since July 15. Her more than three decades' experience in academia — spanning across teaching, research, faculty governance and administration — stood out in the presidential search process that led to her hiring last spring.
After getting her Ph.D. in communication arts in 1985, Wilson began a teaching and research career at the University of Louisville and the University of California Santa Barbara. Her research career focused on the impact of media on children.
She moved to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 2000. There, she worked her way up from a professorship to second-in-command of the 90,000-student system.
Along with performances by student musicians, much of the event was devoted to comments from various campus members centered on the university's future and impact within Iowa.
Regan Smock, undergraduate student body president, told the crowd she hopes "this tradition and commitment to value (of) undergraduate perspectives will only go stronger as (Wilson) continues to lead our campus."
"We are genuinely grateful that you are here; not just like something you say. This job is hard. Being a leader is hard. But I am so glad you keep showing up with that beloved positive attitude," Smock said. "We're so lucky you're here, and I am so excited to see the way that the University of Iowa flourishes under your leadership."
President of Iowa's Board of Regents, Michael Richards, told onlookers that the hiring of a university president is the governing body's most important task.
"In its search for a new university president, the regents and the Iowa campus saw in Barbara Wilson a leader with unusual depth of experience in public higher education leadership," Richards said.
Other speakers included President of the Graduate & Professional Student Government, Moala Bannavti; President of the Staff Council, Kevin Zihlman; Teresa Marshall, president of the Faculty Senate, Lt. Governor of Iowa, Adam Gregg and Ted Abel, director of the Iowa Neuroscience Institute.
The ceremony also included a video speech from Sandy Boyd, university president from 1969-1981.
"Give 'em hell, Barbara," Boyd said.
This article has been corrected to accurately quote Barbara Wilson. The correct quote is: "Today on the university's 175th birthday, I embrace my role as president with great pride and tremendous humility."
Cleo Krejci covers education for the Iowa City Press-Citizen. You can reach her at ckrejci@press-citizen.com.
This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: University of Iowa looks to the future in commemorating 175th birthday
