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A Call to (Link) Arms
 By E. Gordon Gee
Nearly 18 months ago, I returned to The Ohio State University for
what is, in our business, a rare reprisal. After leading Ohio State from
1990 to 1997, I was president of Brown University, then chancellor of
Vanderbilt University. In fact, I like to say that I have been president
of half the universities in this country.
For many observers, my return to Ohio State was surprising. Truly,
though, I felt called back, and 11 million Ohioans have welcomed me back
with incomparable warmth and kindness. To reconnect with them, I rented
a van and traveled 4,100 miles around the state last summer, visiting
all 88 counties and talking with alumni and friends—from the
manufacturing towns along Lake Erie to the Appalachian counties along
the Ohio River.
The trip was exhausting. It was wonderful. It was Homeric in many,
many ways. But most importantly, the experience reaffirmed my purpose
and the purpose of the institution I lead. It also underscored for me,
at the most basic level, the unmatched power of higher education to
change lives. . . .
Excerpted from the spring 2009 issue of The Presidency.
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| The Presidency, spring 2009, E. Gordon Gee |
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