Ron Stump may be leaving CU, but his roots will remain
Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Ron Stump will leave his post of nine years on July 1.
Stump has been with the university in several capacities for 12 years.
As Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, which is made up of 39 departments, Stump currently oversees Housing and Dining Services, the Office of Admission, the Financial Aid Office. He also oversees UCSU cost centers including Wardenburg Health Center, the Student Recreation Center, and the UMC.
“This is a really huge division,” university spokesman Bronson Hilliard said. “(Stump) organized the division into an effective unit. Whoever steps into that position will have big shoes to fill.”
Stump’s assistant, Susan Villalobos-Boehm, said he is a good listener, very considerate and compassionate.
“He’s the glue that holds the division together,” Villalobos-Boehm said. “Working for him makes me want to be a better person.”
Stump will become the interim director of the Alumni Association starting in February, after the departure of current director Kent Zimmerman.
“I wanted to do something different before leaving higher education,” Stump said.
Stump said he wants to bring the university and its alumni together. He will listen to both groups to meet their interests and to identify a common goal.
Stump made his decision spontaneously after the administration approached him about the opportunity to become the interim director for the Alumni Association.
“The Alumni Association is lucky that he agreed to do that,” Hilliard said.
Stump has yet to decide what path he will pursue after his time at the Alumni Association.
Now that he is leaving CU, Stump remembers the people more than his accomplishments. He leaves one suggestion for his successor: trust in your people.
“Leadership is selfless; a daily exercise in vulnerability,” Stump said. “It’s the very opposite of control and self promotion. It’s a quest, a search that never ends.”
Hilliard said the search for a new vice chancellor has not yet begun. The university has yet to name any members or a chair for the search committee.
“We will be looking for a visionary individual with great ideas,” Hilliard said.
Check back the Campus Press daily for a four-part series on Ron Stump’s departure from CU, beginning on Thursday.
Contact Campus Press Staff Editor Aaron Musick at aaron.musick@thecampuspress.com
