Founding the Future

On April 15, 1999, John A. Roush was formally installed as Centre College's 20th president. Three previous Centre presidents - Thomas Spragens (17th), Richard Morrill (18th), and Michael Adams (19th) - all participated in the ceremony, as did Bruce Heilman, now chancellor at the University of Richmond.

"I consider leadership to be an act of service, and it is in this spirit that I pledge to continue listening to, learning about, and, with you as my colleagues, providing leadership for this remarkable place," Roush told a capacity crowd in Newlin Hall.

Possibilities formed the core of Roush's remarks, reflecting both the installationÕs theme - "Founding the Future" - and his own reputation as a futurist. He articulated several of the ways he saw Centre's future, among them "excellence in teaching as a defining value and treasure of the institution" and a continuing commitment to international programs.

"I have to tell you that I am old-fashioned enough to believe in the concept of 'duty,' the idea that what you can do, you must do," he said in conclusion. "Centre has a duty to excel, an obligation to lead, because our founders and our forebears created a place of strength and opportunity."

The new president said he wanted his installation to be "different," and it was. The program featured a readers' drama of Centre history in addition to his more formal remarks. The Centre Singers performed an anthem written for the occasion by Jane Wilson Joyce (classics) and Laurence S. Bitensky (music). Following the ceremony, guests fell in behind the Olympia Brass Band (a perennial favorite at the annual Great American Brass Band Festival held on campus each June) for a parade down Walnut Street. Flagbearers with colorful flags from the 40 countries to which Centre faculty have led students in the last decade represented the college's increasing international emphasis. Later that evening the president joined students for a video karaoke party. (Rumor has it that he does a mean "Heard It Through the Grapevine.")

Other installation events included announcement of a project to restore the historic Sinking Spring area on the lawn in front of Old Centre and a campus Flame Run (proceeds benefited the local Salvation Army). On May 10, three time capsules were buried in front of the Norton Center, to be opened at Homecoming 2050.

Roush was named Centre president in January 1998 and took office on July 1, 1998, his 48th birthday. A summa cum laude graduate in English from Ohio University, he earned a Ph.D. in educational administration from Miami University in Ohio. He came to Centre as vice president for planning at the University of Richmond, his home for 18 years.

- D.F.J.

Centrepiece
Centre College
600 West Walnut St.
Danville, KY 40422

Phone: (859) 238-5717
Fax: (859) 238-5723
E-mail: alumnews@centre.edu
or johnsond@centre.edu