The South Dakota School of Mines and Technology will welcome Dr. Robert A. Wharton, provost and vice president for academic affairs at Idaho State University, as the 18th president of the university on July 1, 2008.
Wharton will assume leadership from Dr. Charles Ruch, who is retiring June 30 after five years as School of Mines' president.
"I am honored to be selected by the Board of Regents to serve as the next president of the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology," Wharton said. "I am enthusiastic about leading the dynamic growth and stewardship of this elite, world-class university and continuing the institution's proud heritage of excellence in preparing students to serve as leaders in the professions of engineering and science."
"I am extremely fortunate to be assuming the presidency from Dr. Charles Ruch, who has provided incredibly successful leadership over the past five years," Wharton said. He said he looks forward to collaborating with the regents, administrative colleagues, faculty, staff, foundation trustees, alumni, community, political and business leaders, legislators and other university stakeholders to "achieve academic excellence, enrich students' lives and ensure their success, substantially grow the research enterprise, create public value and fulfill the school's exciting 21st century vision and its mission."
He added, "Working together, we will significantly enhance the School of Mines' reputation and contribute robustly to the economic development of South Dakota."
"I fully support the Board of Regents decision to appoint Dr. Wharton to the presidency. His experience makes him an excellent match for the School of Mines," Dr. Ruch said. "I greatly enjoyed my time on campus and the quality of people that I have been privileged to work with, and I am confident that Dr. Wharton will do the same."
As the chief academic officer at ISU, Wharton has been responsible for advancing the academic and scholarly life of 13,280 students and 670 faculty members on the Pocatello campus and at four outreach centers. He successfully led the first campus-wide effort to implement and align evidence-based strategic planning, budgeting, and assessment at ISU, and led student recruitment and retention efforts that resulted in a four percent enrollment increase as of fall 2007. The new School of Mines president is a tenured professor of biology at ISU and previously served as its chief research officer, leading the university's efforts to foster, support and expand its research enterprise.
His Ph.D. in botany is from Virginia Polytechnic Institute. He also holds a M.A. degree in biology and a B.A. in botany from Humboldt State University in California.
The new president is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, The Explorers Club and the Royal Geographic Society. Wharton is a recipient of the United States Antarctic Service Medal and has served on the National Research Council's Polar Research Board. He has been actively involved in a number of community outreach and volunteer activities, including Rotary International and service on the local boards of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the Boy Scouts of America, the Greater Pocatello Chamber of Commerce, and the Bannock Development Corp.
President-elect Wharton is married to Carolyn R. Fassi Wharton, a native of St. Louis, Missouri. Dr. Fassi Wharton has 20 years of experience working in health care administration at the federal, state, and local levels, in private industry and in academe as a faculty member. Her doctorate in public administration is from the University of Southern California and she holds a master in public health degree from San Jose State University. Dr. Wharton's son, Matthew Wharton, is a software engineer with Medtronic Corp. in Colorado.
