“We Found a Gem!”
Although she has served for 98 days as the leader of the campus between Kenosha and Racine, Dr. Deborah Ford "officially" rose to the status of chancellor in the University of Wisconsin System Friday, Nov. 6, during an installation and investiture ceremony in the UW-Parkside Student Center. University of Wisconsin System President Kevin Reilly placed a medallion emblazoned with the campus' trees and leaves symbol around Dr. Ford's neck, entrusting her with the education of the university's current 5,000-plus student body and with UW-Parkside's future.
Earlier in the program, UW System Regent and UW-Parkside graduate Michael Falbo enthusiastically welcomed Chancellor Ford to campus, saying she was clearly the strongest candidate in a field of strong candidates.
"We found a gem!" Falbo said of Ford, adding she had already had a positive impact on the campus during her brief tenure.
"Dr. Ford represents a new era in the history of UW-Parkside," President Reilly stated.
During her inaugural address, Chancellor Ford spoke of moving the campus forward with courage. She said the campus would build on the courage of people like Wisconsin State Representative George Molinaro who championed a campus in southeastern Wisconsin during the mid-1960s and on the legacy of previous chancellors Irvin Wyllie, Alan Guskin, Sheila Kaplan, Eleanor Smith, and John Keating in moving forward.
Later Chancellor Ford shared the stage with current UW-Parkside Biological Sciences major Nicholas Cozzi and graduate business student Major Franklin who spoke of their challenges and rewards as students at the university.
Chancellor Ford pledged to work with the leaders of local school districts, the area's other institutions of higher education, the business community, and the people of southeastern Wisconsin and northern Illinois to, as the UW System Growth Agenda states, grow students, grow jobs, and grow communities.
