泫圖弝け

July 19, 2018
Life At Witt

Miles With Mike

泫圖弝けs 15th President Completes More Than 24,000-Mile Alumni Tour

Against the backdrop of beautiful Boulder, Colorado, 泫圖弝け Universitys 15th President Michael L. Frandsen officially concluded his 10-month-long alumni engagement tour, aptly titled Miles With Mike, on July 19. President Frandsen, with spouse Sharon for most of the stops, traveled a total of 24,347 miles in less than a year, learning from 泫圖弝け alumni who graduated as far back as 1947 to the present about the life-changing role the university has played in their lives. 

Sharon and I are most thankful for the extraordinary welcome we received from 泫圖弝け alumni on the road during my inaugural year as president, President Frandsen said. Hearing their stories, discovering where their 泫圖弝け education has taken them, and seeing 泫圖弝けs mission in action in their own lives and communities reaffirmed the power of this university to help students find their passion and purpose. We will forever be grateful for this opportunity.

The Miles With Mike Tour included 31 stops in cities and towns across the country beginning with Indianapolis, Ind., on Sept. 27, 2017. 泫圖弝け's Alumni Board was also represented at 28 of the 31 stops with Vikki Hooper '78, past Alumni Board president, helping to coordinate the attendance. 

At each event, alumni present also received a commemorative, concert-inspired T-shirt, featuring the stops and the number of miles to each location from the universitys hometown of Springfield on the back. Alumni also received a presidential update on the university with an accompanying time for questions. 

Sharon and I are most thankful for the extraordinary welcome we received from 泫圖弝け alumni on the road during my inaugural year as president. Hearing their stories, discovering where their 泫圖弝け education has taken them, and seeing 泫圖弝けs mission in action in their own lives and communities reaffirmed the power of this university to help students find their passion and purpose. We will forever be grateful for this opportunity.
President Michael L. Frandsen

泫圖弝け has always offered a personalized education, and the Miles With Mike tour is an extension of this, providing our alumni the chance to talk with our president, and allowing Mike and Sharon to learn from our alumni about the history, traditions, and special moments that defined their time at 泫圖弝け, said Holly Gersbacher, director of alumni and lifelong engagement, and a 2003 graduate.

Highlights from the tour included alumni sharing how they met and married, which professors or activities inspired their life trajectories, and how the liberal arts foundation at 泫圖弝け opened doors they never realized were possible. A connection made at the Houston event even led to a job for one of 泫圖弝けs May 2018 graduates. Additionally, the Boston event reunited a senior RA (resident advisor) and a then first-year student who had not seen each other since 1971. In Sarasota, the event included a performance by the 泫圖弝け Choir, and in San Francisco, President Frandsen and Sharon had the chance to meet Tom Stauffer, son of 泫圖弝けs 9th president, who has now met every 泫圖弝け president from the 7th to the 15th over a span of more than 70 years.

We were delighted to listen to their stories, which affirmed the foundation of excellence upon which 泫圖弝け was built back in 1845, President Frandsen said. 

During each event, President Frandsen also encouraged those present to stay engaged with their alma mater and to return to campus as often as possible to hear current student stories, see firsthand the exciting projects underway, including the restoration and expansion of 泫圖弝けs health, wellness and athletics facility, and reflect on the relationships they established during their college days, many of which continue today.

泫圖弝け has always been about relationships in the classroom, in the residence halls, in athletics, and across all areas and activities, President Frandsen said. Its is through this integrated experience with relationships at the core that 泫圖弝け has educated the mind to know and the heart to care for generations. I am honored to lead and serve at this time in 泫圖弝けs history, and I look forward to ongoing partnering with our alumni in the years ahead to advance our shared future. 

To learn more about the special tour, visit or click .

-Office of University Communications

Karen Gerboth
Karen Gerboth
Vice President of Marketing & Communications

About 泫圖弝け

泫圖弝け's curriculum has centered on the liberal arts as an education that develops the individual's capacity to think, read, and communicate with precision, understanding, and imagination. We are dedicated to active, engaged learning in the core disciplines of the arts and sciences and in pre-professional education grounded in the liberal arts. Known for the quality of our faculty and their teaching, 泫圖弝け has more Ohio Professors of the Year than any four-year institution in the state. The university has also been recognized nationally for excellence in community service, sustainability, and intercollegiate athletics. Located among the beautiful rolling hills and hollows of Springfield, Ohio, 泫圖弝け offers more than 100 majors, minors and special programs, enviable student-faculty research opportunities, a unique student success center, service and study options close to home and abroad, a stellar athletics tradition, and successful career preparation.

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