One of the longest serving college presidents in western Washington is stepping down. The President of Pacific Lutheran University plans to retire effective a year from now, June 1, 2012.
Loren Anderson made the announcement Tuesday afternoon to faculty and staff at the south Tacoma campus. Anderson has led Pacific Lutheran University for the past 20 years. (The university holds the broadcast license for KPLU-FM.)
Anderson says he’s most proud of the school’s global education program. About 40 percent of students now spend some time studying abroad.
“ We’ve learned so powerfully in the last decade that our world is smaller and more interconnected and more interdependent and yet it’s a more difficult and conflicted and divided place. And we just must educate a new generation of leaders who are equipped with the skills that allow them to move across national borders and cultural boundaries with ease and with effectiveness,” Anderson said.
During Anderson’s two decade tenure at PLU, the university has undergone an extensive building boom . Structures built under his watch include a music performance hall, a center for business, math and science and the Martin J. Neeb Broadcast Center where KPLU is housed. A new center for performing arts and an upgrade of athletic fields are in the works.
Listen to the full interview with Dr. Anderson:
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kplu/local-kplu-971311.mp3