Gregg Andrews, dean and chief administrative officer of Kent State at Tuscarawas, announced in October he will resign effective July 1, 2014, after 29 years of service. Now that a new master plan is in place and facility expansions and renovations are almost completed, Andrews said he thinks it is the best time to step down.

“I began to think about where we were as a campus,” Andrews said. “We’re not in the middle of any major capital campaign for fundraising, so it just seemed like this is a perfect time for there to be a transition of leadership on campus.”

Andrews said he plans to accept an assignment to become the special assistant to Wanda Thomas, the associate provost and regional college dean at Kent State.

“He’s going to be completing his 30th year at Kent State University,” Thomas said. “He wanted to continue to maintain some employment at the university, and he’ll be a tremendous asset to the associate provost’s office, particularly with his many years of experience at the university. I’m really looking forward to that involvement.”

In addition to the work that has begun on the Tolloty Technology Incubator at the nearby Tuscarawas Regional Technology Park, Andrews said renovations were completed on Founders Hall, and improvements were made to campus safety and security.

Andrews also said he is proud of the new construction on campus, including the state-of-the-industry Science and Advanced Technology Center and the world-class Performing Arts Center – two projects worth more than a combined $27 million.

“I think the progress of the campus has been something that I am extremely proud of,” Andrews said. “We’ve built two major buildings that are completed now, and there’s a third one that will be completed by this summer. We’ve also been heavily involved and expanded our commitment to economic and community development activities.”

Prior to assuming the dean’s role, Andrews worked as the director of special programs and continuing studies at Kent State Stark for 10 years. Andrews also got his undergraduate and doctoral degrees from Kent State.

“I’ve really spent my entire life at Kent State,” Andrews said.

During his 29 years of service, he said the most important aspect of his position was the impact Kent State Tuscarawas has had on the quality of life in the community.

“The thing that I enjoyed most was having an impact on the quality of life in our community,” Andrews said. “This encompasses our students graduating with degrees that enable them to get good jobs, which enables them to support their families and improves the quality of their lives. It also includes the work that we’ve done with the Performing Arts Center to bring in types of activities to our community that people had to go to Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Columbus to participate in.”

Andrews said he will also spend some time teaching sociology classes at Kent State Tuscarawas, an experience he said he is “very excited about.”

“Dr. Andrews has been a strong visionary leader who has grown this campus to better serve the needs of our community,” said Frances Haldar, assistant dean at Kent State Tuscarawas. “We will miss him and wish him the best in his future endeavors.”

Contact Mariam Makatsaria at [email protected].