“It was an excellent evaluation. The board is in full support of Dr. Gilbert and feels he is doing an exemplary job,” said Scaggs. “When we hired him as our president just over a year ago, we had high expectations. He has lived up to those expectations, and in many ways, surpassed them.
“We appreciate everything he has done for Marshall University in his first year—his hard work, his vision and his strong leadership of our university. Already, applications are up for this fall, research funding is trending upward, and the university community is energized and excited about our future.
“I also want to express my appreciation to the evaluation committee of the board for the work they’ve done since February to conduct this review. We look forward to continuing to work with President Gilbert in the coming years to make Marshall an even better and stronger university.”
The evaluation was conducted during executive session at the end of today’s regularly scheduled board meeting.
Gilbert was named the 37th president of Marshall University in October 2015 and assumed the presidency in January 2016. A Mississippi native with a background in biomedical engineering and research, Gilbert came to Marshall after serving nearly 30 years in various administrative, academic and research positions at Mississippi State University.
His vision for Marshall University is to blend the university’s traditional focus on the liberal arts with its emerging strengths in science, technology, engineering and the health professions—to prepare students to become leaders for the 21st century. His initial goals include growing the institution in both size and quality through increased enrollment and retention, scholarly research and doctoral programs, private donations and marketing.
Gilbert has a bachelor’s degree in biological engineering from Mississippi State and a doctorate in biomedical engineering from Duke University.