President of Emporia State University

President of
Emporia State University

Seal of the President

Incumbent
Ken Hush

since June 22, 2022 (2022-06-22)
Interim: November 17, 2021 to June 21, 2022

Emporia State University
Residence| Emporia, Kansas
Appointer| Kansas Board of Regents
Formation| February 15, 1865 (1865-02-15)
First holder| Lyman Beecher Kellogg
Website| Office of the President

The President of Emporia State University is the chief administrator of the university.[1] Each is appointed by and is responsible to the other members of that body, who delegate to him or her the day-to-day running of the university. The president of Emporia State is selected by the Kansas Board of Regents, the governing board for public universities in the state of Kansas, after a nationwide search.

Emporia State University is a public university in Emporia, Kansas, United States, east of the Flint Hills. Established in March 1863 and originally known as the Kansas State Normal School, Emporia State is the third oldest public university in the state of Kansas.[2] Emporia State is one of six public universities governed by the Kansas Board of Regents.[3] The university offers degrees in more than 80 courses of study through 4 colleges: the School of Business, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, School of Library and Information Management, and The Teachers College. The Teachers College is one of only four post–secondary institutions in the nation to be identified as an Exemplary Model Teacher Education program by Arthur Levine in his 2006 national study of teacher education programs.[4]

To date, the youngest president of Emporia State University has been Lyman Beecher Kellogg, who was the first president of what was the Kansas State Normal. When appointed as the first president of the new state normal school in January 1865, he was only 23 years old.[5] The longest-serving president of the university was Thomas W. Butcher, who held the office for thirty years from 1913 to 1943. The first university alumnus to become its president was Joseph H. Hill in 1906.

As of 18 November 2024, Emporia State is led by Ken Hush, who was named interim president in November 2021, after Allison Garrett left to become the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education chancellor. He was named the 18th president in June 2022.[6] Garrett replaced the sixteenth president, Michael Shonrock, and interim president, Jackie Vietti, and assumed her position on January 4, 2016.[7] Garrett, who was previously the executive vice president at Abilene Christian University, was selected as Emporia State University's 17th president on October 22, 2015.[8] Using the university's counting method (interim presidents are not numbered), Garrett was the seventeenth president of the university.[9] Sixteen men and two women have served as the university's permanent president, and four men and one woman have served as its interim president pending the appointment of a permanent successor.

Each president is a qualified academic professor in some department of the university and will, on occasion, teach courses.

## List of presidents

[edit]

These persons have served as presidents or interim presidents of Kansas State Normal School (1863–1923), Kansas State Teachers College (1923–1974), Emporia Kansas State College (1974–1977), and Emporia State University (1977–present).

Presidents of Emporia State University No.  | Portrait  | President  | Tenure  | Background and accomplishments

|
|
|
|

Kansas State Normal School (1863–1923)
1  |  | Lyman Beecher Kellogg | 1865–71  | Kellogg was the first president of the newly established normal school in Kansas, and he opened the first class of 18 students with the Lord's Prayer on February 15, 1865.[5] Because funding, facilities, and teaching materials were limited, Kellogg was the only teacher besides being the president and emphasized in Latin and English. In fall of 1865, he added Henry Brace Norton, also an Illinois Normal University graduate, to the faculty.[10]
2  |  | George W. Hoss | 1871–73  | Hoss was able to secure funds from the state legislature to construct a new building, as the number of enrolled students had increased to 200; however, the assembly room in the old building could only accommodate 100. In 1872, Hoss invited members of the state House of Representatives to visit the KSN. The day after their visit, the House passed a $50,000 appropriation, with the provision that the city provide $10,000.[11] The new building was constructed in front of the old building, facing Commercial street, during the fall and winter of 1871 to 1872.[11]
3  |  | Charles Rhodes Pomeroy | 1874–79  | Pomeroy served as president during a financial crisis forcing him to work without salary, the only unpaid president. Pomeroy also had no funds to work with, either, due to the financial crisis. Faculty worked off a very small salary until July 2, 1879, when the board voted that bonds on the school's lands would be distributed to teachers.[12]
4  |  | Rudolph B. Welch | 1879–82  | Welch's administration was housed in two temporary buildings due to a fire and tornado in 1878.[13] Welch traveled the state of Kansas to promote the school and under Welch's management, the school saw a notable increase in attendance.[14]
5  |  | Albert R. Taylor | 1882–1901  | Taylor was a president who focused on students and based on that, made an effort to expand the student population by offering reimbursement for students who travelled 100+ miles to attend the school. Taylor also established programs which included 10-week sessions, summer school, commercial courses, and military drills. He also upgraded the history, economics, and psychology departments.[15]
6  |  | Jasper N. Wilkinson | 1901–06  | During Wilkinson's term, he forbid students failing to continue their program at the school and changed the policies of earning a degree. In the fall of 1901, the men's basketball team competed in its first game at the school.[16] In 1903, a new library was opened.[17]
7  |  | Joseph H. Hill | 1906–13  | Hill, the university's first alumnus president, was able to build two new buildings on campus and have them opened including the science hall in 1907 and a gymnasium. The other new building that opened during Hill's administration was the new gymnasium, opening in 1910. In 1909, a $20,000 approval to purchase and reconstruct a property on the east side of campus to house the music department was granted from the Kansas State Legislature.[18]
Kansas State Teachers College (1923–1974)
8  |  | Thomas W. Butcher | 1913–43  | Butcher, Emporia State's longest serving president to this day, accomplished many things while at the Kansas State Teachers College. In 1914, a "work study" program was started, which is still used today. The new four stories high administrative building, named Plumb Hall, was completed in 1917.[19] It also houses a 2,500-seat auditorium, named Albert Taylor Hall after the fifth president of KSN Albert R. Taylor.[20] Under Butcher's administration, the Memorial Union was built in 1922, and in 1938 a new football stadium, later named Francis G. Welch Stadium, was completed.
9  |  | James F. Price | 1943–45  | Price was president during World War II. Price created many committees during his tenure to focus on the needs of the students.[21]
10  |  | David L. MacFarlane | 1945–53  | MacFarlane was able to gain funds to build the William Allen White Library on the south side of campus and build new residence halls on the north side of campus.[11] In 1952, MacFarlane suffered from heart problems and later died on January 3, 1953, while still in office, making him the first, and only first sitting president at Emporia State to die in office.[22]
–  |  | John Jacobs
(interim) | 1953  | Jacobs became the first interim president of KSTC after MacFarlane died of heart problems.[22] Jacobs began on January 16, 1953, and his last day at KSTC was July 31, 1953.
11  |  | John E. King | 1953–66  | King served 13 years as president and oversaw KSTC's enrollment increase to the school's largest enrollment in school history. Scholarships were also increased in number.[23]
–  |  | Larry Boylan
(interim) | 1966–67  | Boylan served as the interim president of KSTC from August 1966 to February 1967.[24]
Emporia Kansas State College (1974–1977) and Emporia State University (April 1977–present)
12  |  | John E. Visser | 1967–84  | Visser established both the faculty and student senates and valued strong transparency between the students and administration. Visser also reorganized the school into different academic schools with departments and divisions inside the schools.[25] Visser's also saw the school reach a new enrollment figure of 7,150 students in 1969, the school's largest,[26] as well as helped transition them to a university with name changes in 1974 – Emporia Kansas State College – and to its current name, Emporia State University in April 1977, when the school was granted university status.[27]
13  |  | Robert E. Glennen | 1984–97  | Glennen began at Emporia State on July 1, 1984, at a time when universities were facing budget cuts – in this case, ESU with $1 million – and ESU was facing declining enrollment, and even the threat of closing of the university.[11] One of his most notable events during Visser's tenure was the establishment of the National Teachers Hall of Fame, a non-profit organization that honors exceptional school teachers throughout the United States.[28]
14  |  | Kay Schallenkamp | 1997–2006  | Schallenkamp was the first woman president to serve Emporia State University, as well as in the Kansas Board of Regents system.[29] During her tenure at ESU, she was able to keep enrollment stabilized after several years of decline.[29] She also created a brand identity for the university, including the famous "Power E", which is the commonly seen with the athletics teams. The new identity replaced multiple logos and helped make Emporia State more recognizable throughout the world. Schallenkamp also increased the financial pool within the university's foundation and established the Presidential Scholars program with intent to help recruit students for Emporia State.[30]
–  |  | John O. Schwenn
(interim) | 2006  | Schwenn began his career as the Interim President of ESU on July 1, 2006, and serving until October 31, 2006. Previously, Schwenn served multiple positions at Emporia State with holding the office of provost before becoming the interim president.[31]
15  |  | Michael R. Lane | 2006–11  | Lane began in November 2006 and oversaw the largest on campus renovation project of the Memorial Union.[32] On June 30, 2011, Lane stepped down to return to teaching accounting at Emporia State, after many of the alumni and community members questioned his commitment to the university.[33]
–  |  | H. Edward Flentje
(interim) | 2011  | Flentje began his five-month term on July 1, 2011, as the interim president of Emporia State. He served until December 31, 2011.[34] During Fientje's tenure, he helped establish $7.5 million[35] in new scholarships for new students, freshmen, and transfer students.[36]
16  |  | Michael Shonrock | 2012–15  | Shonrock began his tenure on January 3, 2012. One year later to kick-off Emporia State's sesquicentennial year, Shonrock and his administration launch the largest fundraising campaign in Emporia State history, with a $45 million goal in five-to-seven years.[37] Also during Shonrock's tenure, Emporia State saw seven consecutive increased semesters of enrollment growth,[38] and received additional money from the Government of Kansas for an honors college.[39] Shonrock also led the development of a campus master plan and The Adaptive University Strategic Plan, instituted a new statewide and regional marketing campaign, and communications with alumni were enhanced and new community partnerships were established. Shonrock also started a bi-weekly radio segment called ESU Buzz on KVOE, which always had guest and discussed a variety of issues and events at Emporia State.[40]
–  |  | Jackie Vietti
(interim) | 2015  | Vietti served as interim president from June 1 to December 31, 2015.[41] During Vietti's term, she helped the university begin to move forward to become a more diverse university after an assistant professor from the School of Library and Information Management (SLIM) claimed a racial note was written aimed at him and his wife in April 2015.[42][43] In September 2015, Vietti released a statement saying two investigations concluded that no hate crime occurred; however, as a result, the assistant professor filed a federal lawsuit against the university and its officials in October 2015.[44][45][46] Vietti also formed a relationship between the university and Lyon County and City of Emporia governments with both governments donating a $375,000 each year for the next five years.[47]
17  |  | Allison Garrett | 2016–2021  | Garrett began her career as the 17th president of Emporia State University on January 4, 2016.[8] Garrett previously served as the executive vice president at Abilene Christian University, and before that as the senior vice president at Oklahoma Christian University.[48] Garrett helped Emporia State achieve increased enrollment in graduate school, set a fundraising record for the university, and helped oversee the projects of an aquatic research center, new house for the university president, a new tennis complex, and a new residence hall.[49]
18  |  | Ken Hush | 2022  | Hush was appointed as interim president at ESU in November 2021. He was named the 18th president of Emporia State University on June 22, 2022.[50]

## Timeline

[edit]

* v
* t
* e

Presidents of Emporia State University

Kellogg (1865–71)

King (1953–66)

Hoss (1871–73)

Boylan (1966–67)

Pomeroy (1874–79)

Visser (1967–84)

Welch (1879–82)

Glennen (1984–97)

Taylor (1882–1901)

Schallenkamp (1997–2006)

Wilkinson (1901–06)

Schwenn (2006)

Hill (1906–13)

Lane (2006–11)

Butcher (1913–43)

Flentje (2011)

Price (1943–45)

Shonrock (2012–15)

MacFarlane (1945–53)

Vietti (2015)

Jacobs (1953)

Garrett (2016–2021)

Ken Hush (2021–present)

1865

1877

1889

1901

1913

1925

1937

1949

1961

1973

1985

1997

2009

2021

2033

gold boxes denotes interim or acting president

Presidents and Interim Presidents of Emporia State University — 1865 to present

## See also

[edit]

* List of Emporia State University people

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Home - Office of the President | Emporia State University". Emporia.edu. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
2. ^ Kansas (1863). One of the oldest public universities in Kansas. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
3. ^ "Governed by the Kansas Board of Regents". Archived from the original on October 16, 2014. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
4. ^ "Education Schools Project". Retrieved January 29, 2016.
5. ^ a b "Collections of the Kansas State Historical Society". 1912. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
6. ^ "Regents name Ken Hush president of Emporia State". www.kansasregents.org. June 22, 2022. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
7. ^ Dulle, Brian (May 6, 2015). "Emporia State names Vietti as interim president". KSNT.com. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
8. ^ a b Llopis, Celia (October 2, 2015). "Regents name Allison Garrett as Emporia State University president". CJOnline.com. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
9. ^ "News Article - News | Emporia State University". Emporia.edu. October 22, 2015. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
10. ^ "Lyman Beecher Kellogg". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
11. ^ a b c d "Robert E. Glennen (1985-1997) - About - Emporia State University". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
12. ^ "Charles R. Pomeroy". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
13. ^ "Rudolph B. Welch papers". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
14. ^ "Report of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction". 1882. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
15. ^ "Albert R. Taylor (1882-1901) - About - Emporia State University". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
16. ^ 2011 MBB Media Guide (PDF). December 16, 2011. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
17. ^ "Jasper N. Wilkinson". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
18. ^ "Joseph H. Hill". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
19. ^ Hanschu, Steven (2013). Emporia State University. ISBN 9780738598741. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
20. ^ "Albert Taylor Hall". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
21. ^ "James F. Price (1943-1945) - About - Emporia State University". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
22. ^ a b "Lawrence Journal-World - Google News Archive Search". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
23. ^ "John E. King (1953-1966) - About - Emporia State University". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
24. ^ "Acting President of KSTC" (PDF).
25. ^ "Dr. John E. Visser (1967-1985) - About - Emporia State University". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
26. ^ "About Home - About - Emporia State University". Archived from the original on August 25, 2014. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
27. ^ "Past to Present - About - Emporia State University". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
28. ^ "About the National Teachers Hall of Fame". Archived from the original on November 3, 2017. Retrieved April 21, 2015.
29. ^ a b "News Archives - CJOnline.com". Archived from the original on February 8, 2017. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
30. ^ "Kay Schallenkamp (1997-2006) - About - Emporia State University". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
31. ^ "ESU's Schwenn lands president job in Georgia". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
32. ^ "ESU rededicates Memorial Union". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
33. ^ WIBW. "Emporia State University President Announces Resignation". Retrieved June 23, 2016.
34. ^ "Interim President Appointed For Emporia State". Archived from the original on July 15, 2015. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
35. ^ "The Bulletin : $7.5 million promised". Esubulletin.com. November 10, 2011. Archived from the original on February 17, 2015. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
36. ^ "Q&A with Flentje: Interim president ready to 'return to normalcy'". Esubulletin.com. December 12, 2011. Archived from the original on February 18, 2015. Retrieved January 28, 2016.
37. ^ "ESU Announces Now & Forever Campaign". CJOnline.com. Retrieved September 19, 2014.
38. ^ Chuck Samples. "Spring enrollment up at ESU - KVOE". Archived from the original on May 28, 2015. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
39. ^ "Emporia State to establish Honors College". Archived from the original on November 14, 2015. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
40. ^ "ESU Buzz - KVOE". Archived from the original on July 1, 2013. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
41. ^ "Former Butler president named interim leader at Emporia State". Wichita. May 5, 2015. Archived from the original on May 28, 2015.
42. ^ "Emporia State couple claims racial harassment at university". Kshb.com. Associated Press. July 30, 2015. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
43. ^ "Emporia State couple claims racial harassment at university". Bigstory.ap.org. July 29, 2015. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
44. ^ Margaret Stafford, Greg Palmer (November 20, 2015). "Discrimination lawsuit filed against Emporia State leaders". Wibw.com. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
45. ^ "Assistant professor files lawsuit against Emporia State - Emporia Gazette: Latest News And Features". Emporia Gazette. October 6, 2015. Retrieved October 22, 2015.[permanent dead link‍]
46. ^ Nick Viviani (September 9, 2015). "No hate crime at Emporia State, internal investigation finds". WIBW.com. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
47. ^ "Lyon County Commission approves ESU University Community in Motion funding request". KVOE. December 10, 2015. Archived from the original on February 3, 2016. Retrieved January 1, 2016.
48. ^ "Dr. Allison Garrett, Office of Executive Vice President". Acu.edu. July 6, 2012. Archived from the original on October 7, 2015. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
49. ^ "September 2021 — President Garrett Resigns - Emporia State University". www.emporia.edu. September 24, 2021. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
50. ^ Carter, Alex; Motter, Sarah. "Board of Regents names Ken Hush as next president of Emporia State University". wibw.com. Retrieved June 22, 2022.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website – Office of the President
* Past Presidents website
* Past Interim Presidents website

* v
* t
* e

Presidents of Emporia State University

* Lyman Beecher Kellogg (1865–1871)
* George W. Hoss (1871–1873)
* Charles Rhodes Pomeroy (1873–1879)
* Rudolph B. Welch (1879–1882)
* Albert R. Taylor (1882–1901)
* Jasper N. Wilkinson (1901–1906)
* Joseph H. Hill (1906–1913)
* Thomas W. Butcher (1913–1943)
* James F. Price (1943–1945)
* David L. MacFarlane (1945–1953)
* John E. Jacobs # (1953)
* John E. King (1953–1966)
* Larry Boylan # (1966–1967)
* John E. Visser (1967–1985)
* Robert E. Glennen (1985–1997)
* Kay Schallenkamp (1997–2006)
* John O. Schwenn # (2006)
* Michael R. Lane (2006–2011)
* H. Edward Flentje # (2011)
* Michael Shonrock (2012–2015)
* Jackie Vietti # (2015)
* Allison Garrett (2016–2021)
* Ken Hush† (2021– )

# denotes acting or interim president • † served as interim president prior to being named permanent president

* v
* t
* e

Emporia State University

Academics|

* Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies
* School of Applied Health Sciences
* School of Business and Technology
* Kansas Business Hall of Fame
* School of Humanities and Social Sciences
* School of Library and Information Management and Archives
* School of Sciences and Mathematics
* School of Visual and Performing Arts
* Teachers College
* National Teachers Hall of Fame

Athletics|

* Overview: Emporia State Hornets (conference)

| Teams|

* Baseball
* Basketball
* men
* women
* Football
* Seasons
* Turnpike Tussle

|

Facilities|

* Francis G. Welch Stadium
* Trusler Sports Complex
* William L. White Auditorium

Media|

* KFFX
* KVOE Radio

People|

* Alumni
* Presidents
* Ken Hush
* Provost
* Brent Thomas
* Athletics Director
* David Spafford

Student life|

* "Fight On, Emporia!"
* Corky the Hornet
* Memorial Union

Established: 1863
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template