A Dream Made Real

1992-2005

Dr. Roger H. Perry Champlain College President

Throughout its 132-year history, Champlain College has had many distinguished leaders, but none have had as enduring an impact on the institution as Dr. Roger H. Perry, the College's sixth president. During his tenure, Dr. Perry provided the vision and the leadership that transformed Champlain from a local two-year college into an international 21st- century center for higher education and a model for other institutions to follow.

A graduate of Dartmouth College and Syracuse University with a long teaching history, Dr. Perry arrived at the College in 1982 and began his service as vice president for academic affairs. After subsequently serving as provost, he assumed the presidency in 1992. During the next 13 years, Dr. Perry dramatically expanded both Champlain's academic offerings and its campus infrastructure and, in doing so, led the College to the vibrant renaissance it continues to enjoy today.

As president, Dr. Perry challenged the Champlain community to dare to dream and to make bold strides toward that imagined future. With an unwavering commitment to innovation and student education both inside and outside the classroom, he instituted 16 new bachelor's degree programs, established the College's first graduate degrees, created Champlain's cutting-edge online distance learning division, and established the institution's acclaimed foreign learning programs and international campuses.

This extraordinary academic leadership was coupled with a series of prescient initiatives to thoroughly modernize the Champlain campus. During his historic tenure, Dr. Perry presided over the construction of such architecturally significant centerpieces as the Hauke Family Campus Center and Alumni Auditorium, the Robert E. and Holly D. Miller Information Commons, the Main Street Suites and Conference Center, the S.D. Ireland Family Center for Global Business and Technology, and the IDX Student Life Center.

In these and many other ways, Dr. Perry worked tirelessly to successfully position Champlain College as a preeminent institution of academic excellence and secure for the institution a prosperous future. His legacy will be felt by every student, every faculty member, and every administration for decades to come, and it is the profound privilege of Champlain College to name Roger H. Perry Hall in his honor. -GD