Maxson
is passionate and outstanding,’ Reed
says
By
Charles B. Reed
California State University Chancellor
It is fitting for me to write about Robert C. Maxson for the Daily Forty-Niner
because Maxson is all about students. He has often said the three most important
things for a university president to remember are students, students, students.
And I agree. Students are what make a university, and our attention should
always be focused on how university policies and programs affect students.
Bob has been a passionate and outstanding president for Cal State Long Beach.
Since he came to the campus in 1994, he has focused on raising the academic
reputation of the campus so that its students, staff, faculty and the community
are proud to be part of “The Beach,” the phrase that Bob made popular
across the country.
Few other presidents are as comfortable with students as he is. New students
are often surprised to see him all across the campus and at most sporting events
with his wife, Sylvia. There are not very many other presidents as visible
as Bob. Even the Long Beach Press-Telegram’s sports columnist, who initially
wrote a negative column when Bob was appointed president, now fondly writes
about him regularly, and calls him “Fightin’ Bob.” Plus,
to raise money, a major company created a bobble head of Bob—I don’t
know of any other president who can list that on his résumé!
As a testament to his support for students, Bob created the Presidents Scholars
Program, which supports 375 valedictorians and National Merit Scholars with
full four-year scholarships. The program, funded by private donors, has raised
the profile of the campus, as well as the GPAs of incoming freshmen.
Always looking for another way to support the campus, Bob started the $10 million
Edge for Excellence campaign to raise money for faculty and student research
and scholarly activities. He also is deeply involved in the Long Beach Education
Partnership, the project that ties the school district, the community college
and the university in a partnership to get students better prepared for college.
Maxson also teaches a leadership class, and I am pleased to have been a guest
lecturer. I have seen firsthand how the students respect him. He is more more
than an administrator—he is the face of the campus, whether it is on
his TV show, “Beach View,” walking on campus, teaching a class,
working with his administrative and staff colleagues, or serving on numerous
city and community boards.
I interact most with Bob at the California State University Executive Council,
the bimonthly meetings of all 23 campus presidents. He is a thoughtful participant
at the presidents’ table, often offering solutions to complex issues.
All the presidents and I will all miss his wise counsel. As the CSU Board of
Trustees conducts a search for a new president of CSULB, we will not look for
another Bob Maxson, because we will not find him. We’ll look for someone
who can expand his programs, bolster the campus image even higher and build
on the strong campus community spirit Maxson created.
It is a major task, but
given what Maxson has nurtured, the campus has attracted a strong pool of candidates.
Whoever we select, we will ask him or her to do what Bob has done: put students
first. That is the legacy of Bob Maxson.
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