Dear Lawrentians,
Thank you to all members of the Lawrence community for your patience and dedication as we’ve navigated a new term with new challenges. We all had to pivot quickly in the last month to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19 on our campus, which was not an easy task. I am grateful to our faculty who quickly adjusted their syllabi to accommodate for two weeks of remote learning; to our students and families who adjusted their travel plans to help us stagger the return to campus; and to our staff who supported our community through it all. I continue to be impressed by Lawrence’s commitment to Honor the Pledge and to ensure our collective health and safety.
Even though our term started a bit differently than we originally planned, we have much to look forward to in the coming weeks. From our year-long 175th anniversary celebration to long-standing traditions like Winter Carnival, the Great Midwest Trivia Contest, Cultural Expressions, and the President’s Ball, I look forward to enjoying what winter term has to offer. (And yes, I’m including opportunities to enjoy the Wisconsin winter weather!)
As I mentioned in the December campus update, the new year will bring with it a number of transitions to the university. Today, I share news of upcoming changes to the President’s Cabinet.
Mary Alma Noonan, vice president for finance and administration, will step down from her position at the end of the academic year. Mary Alma joined the Lawrence community in August 2020 and helped to lead the university during the height of the pandemic. She and her team, including Finance, Legal, Human Resources, Information Technology, Facilities, and Campus Services, navigated the university through the financial, personnel, and safety challenges brought by the pandemic and ensured that the university continued to meet its mission during an unprecedented time.
I am grateful for the knowledge, empathy, and steady hand that she brought to the role and for her contributions as a member of the President’s Cabinet. We are working with the firm Storbeck Search on a national search for her position and will keep the community posted on its progress.
After 18 years of service to Lawrence University, Ken Anselment, vice president for enrollment, is leaving the university to embark on a new career in higher education consulting. He is expanding his role at the firm RHB, where he has served as the Dan Saracino Chair of Enrollment Management since April 2020. He will lead and develop their enrollment practice. Ken joined Lawrence in 2004 as director of admissions and became dean of admissions and financial aid in 2011, and vice president for enrollment in 2016.
Over the course of his tenure, the university’s enrollment, as well as its racial, ethnic, and geographic diversity, has grown in size. Ken’s holistic approach to admission was a key factor to his work—and legacy—at Lawrence, always ensuring that prospective students and families, as well as all Lawrentians, were made to feel welcome and supported. Ken plans to join RHB in May. We are currently finalizing a firm who will help us conduct a national search to find our next vice president for enrollment; our goal is for this person to be in place in advance of the next admission cycle.
It has been a pleasure to work with both Mary Alma and Ken, and I wish them well in their new endeavors. Please join me in thanking them both for their dedicated service and many contributions to Lawrence University. Celebration plans will be shared with the community as they are available.
Stay warm and seek the places and people on campus that will bring light and joy to you during the term.
Sincerely,
Laurie A. Carter
President, Lawrence University