Hiram – Last Thursday afternoon, the Hiram College Trustees inaugurated Dr. David Haney as the 23rd President of Hiram College. The intimate event, which included distinguished alumni and local government officials such as Judge John Eklund, Portage County Commissioner Sabrina Christian-Bennett, and Portage County Treasurer and Hiram College Alumnus Brad Cromes. Guests also included delegates of other colleges and universities and current students at the event that took place in the college’s Hayden Auditorium on a summer-like afternoon.
Haney came to Hiram College after serving two years as the president of Centenary University, a private liberal arts university in Hackettstown, New Jersey. Prior to that position, Haney served as the vice president for academic affairs at Emory & Henry College, in Southwest Virginia. He began his administrative career as dean of students at the Cambridge School of Weston, Massachusetts. He has served as interim President at Hiram College since the fall of 2020, after the departure of President Lori Varlotta.
In his invocation, Reverend Chris McCreight, a 2003 Hiram College graduate who serves as College Chaplain contrasted the changes that have taken place in the institution’s 172-year history. Originally called the Western Reserve Eclectic Institute, the college was founded by the Disciples of Christ Church as one of very few coed institutions. McCreight noted that ‘a world of change’ has transpired in the lifetime of the college; he noted, that changes at the institution continue to prepare students to address the ever-changing world.
After the invocation, Robert W Turner, 1972 graduate and chair of the Hiram College Board of Trustees, welcomed guests to the inaugural proceedings. Turner is the retired senior vice president for corporate relations at Union Pacific Corporation. Turner also delivered the commencement address on Saturday to the college’s 2022 graduates.
Next, Haney’s wife Lisa Baldwin, known widely as College Mom, addresses the students in the audience. “Thank you,” she noted. “We are here because you are here.” She continued, sharing, “The past year and a half (referring to the time Haney served as interim President), have been a sweet time.” The presidential couple has spent a great deal of time with students on campus, at sporting events, and while walking their dog, Jefferson Garfield, at the College Field Station and Northwoods Field Station in Michigan. Last fall, Baldwin was pleased to join students on a Garfield Study Tour of the deep South. As one who grew up in Alabama in the 1960s, she shared, “I learned so much from students on that trip.” Haney and Baldwin often welcome students and faculty to their home for meals and events. “Our house is the College’s house – and your house,” she added, addressing students.
The inaugural events included many opportunities for the inclusion of students, from hosting an ice cream social study break as well as an all-campus reception following the inauguration, to students presenting select poems from William Wordsworth, Walt Whitman, Ross Gay, and Jericho Brown during the inauguration ceremony. Alumni also provided musical and vocal performances throughout the event.
Hal Williams, former CEO of The Rensselaerville Institute and consultant to governors, corporate CEO’s, foundation directors, and other leaders, served as the event’s keynote speaker. A long-time friend, Williams noted that one of Haney’s keys to success is in his ability to measure his success by the success of the people who work with him. Williams noted, “You won’t find Haney in his office, he’ll be in your boat with you, with his oars in the water.”
Haney established the theme for the inauguration as ‘Designing Results for a Sustainable Future’, highlighting his goal of positioning the liberal arts institution as sustainable in every sense of the word. In his remarks, Dr. Nicholas Hirsch, Director of the School of Science and Technology, quipped, “What could be more sustainable than recycling a university President?”
In his address, Haney noted his plans to work to design a future that will honor Hiram’s 172-year history, to respond to the urgent challenges of our times, and his goal of creating a distinctive environment in which students can thrive and succeed. “This is the mission that will carry Hiram into the future,” the institution’s newest President noted.
Photos courtesy of Hiram College.
