A Message From Board Chair Stephanie Fowler

Dear Lewis & Clark community,

On behalf of the Board of Trustees, I wish to extend a heartfelt thank you to President Wiewel for all that he has done for Lewis & Clark and all he will continue to do over this next year before his retirement. We will always be grateful that Wim postponed his first planned retirement back in 2017 to lead this institution. More than any of us knew, this would be an era of incredible challenges for higher education and society at large. Working with so many across our community, Wim has met those challenges with wisdom and decisive leadership.

While Wim’s decision to leave the presidency at the end of the 2021-22 academic year will be a significant loss, he has put the institution on a solid footing to recruit another dynamic and accomplished leader. In the meantime, we are excited to work with Wim for one more year as president.

As we pivot from the COVID-19 pandemic, we will work together with Wim to strengthen our fulfillment of the college’s mission and financial outlook. With the public launch of our comprehensive campaign, we will continue to build on our recent fundraising success to help us realize more of the elements of our strategic plan. A more intensive and systematic approach to our equity and inclusion efforts, as well as increasing financial aid, will allow us to be a more welcoming community for all. We will begin work on some long-awaited improvements to our facilities. And we will build on Wim’s approach to innovation, especially in academic planning and strategic enrollment management, which has prepared us to meet the demands of the day while remaining true to our liberal arts traditions.

Soon we will begin the search for our next president. I have asked Trustees Paula Hayes BA ’92 and Pat Mahaffy BA ’85 to co-chair the search committee and shortly will be appointing additional Trustees as well as representatives from various constituencies across the college. Our goal will be to name a new leader no later than the end of the calendar year.

In the meantime, we look forward to making the most of our last year of Wim’s inspiring leadership.

Sincerely,

Stephanie Fowler
Chair, Board of Trustees