Husson University’s president will retire in December 2024 after leading the school for more than a decade, the university announced Monday.
Robert Clark, 70, began his tenure as president and chief executive officer in January 2010. He replaced former President William Beardsley, who stepped down after more than 20 years.
Clark, who is from the Kennebec County town of Albion, was vice president of strategic initiatives and founding director of the University of Evansville’s Institute for Global Enterprise in Indiana before coming to Husson. He taught business courses at Butler University, the University of Tampa and the University of Vermont, and served in the U.S. Army.
Clark, whose career in higher education spans more than 40 years, is currently the longest-serving president of four-year colleges and universities in Maine. He oversaw the creation of Harold Alfond Hall, which became the business college’s new home in 2021, and a $38 million capital campaign to support staff development and scholarships, among other projects, during his tenure.
“I will always look back on my time at Husson with great fondness, and I take great pride in the fact that Husson’s next president will take over a thriving university that is growing its reach not only in Maine but across the country,” he said in a statement.
Clark was at the helm when Husson created campus facilities including the Wellness Learning Center in 2019, which helped the school almost double its first-year class of nursing students in a year, and the Wadleigh Academic Center in 2015. The academic center was designed to give athletes and other students a place to collaborate.
The university’s board of trustees will be responsible for hiring a new president.
“What stands out most about Bob is he was all about the students,” said Daniel Hutchins, chair of Husson’s board of trustees. “Every waking hour, he was focused on how to make the student experience better.”