Rodney Allen Erickson (born 1946) is an American academic administrator who served as the 17th president of

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a public state-related land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvania. Founded in 1855 as the Farmers' High School of Pennsylvania, Penn State becam ...

from 2011 to 2014. Formerly executive vice president and provost (chief academic officer), he was named interim president of Penn State on November 9, 2011, after previous president

Graham Spanier Graham Basil Spanier (born July 18, 1948) is a South African-born American sociologist and university administrator who became the 16th president of Pennsylvania State University on September 1, 1995. On November 9, 2011, in the wake of the Penn ...

was forced to resign in the wake of the

Penn State sex abuse scandal The Penn State child sex abuse scandal concerned allegations and subsequent convictions of child sexual abuse committed by Jerry Sandusky, an assistant coach for the Penn State Nittany Lions football team, over a period of at least fifteen years. ...

, after which the "interim" tag was removed later that month. The

Food Science Food science is the basic science and applied science of food; its scope starts at overlap with agricultural science and nutritional science and leads through the scientific aspects of food safety and food processing, informing the development ...

Building at Penn State, which houses the Berkey Creamery, is named after Erickson.

Education and career

Erickson graduated from the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

, where he also earned his master's degree. He earned a

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, an ...

from the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seatt ...

in 1973. After a brief tenure at the

University of Wisconsin-Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

, he came to Penn State as an assistant professor of geography and

business administration Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management ...

. He was promoted to full professor in 1984. He has been part of the Penn State administration since 1995, when he was promoted to dean of the graduate school; in 1997 he was named vice president for research. He was promoted to provost and executive vice president in July 1999. When Erickson became interim president, initial plans called for him to stay on only until a permanent successor could be found. However, on November 17, 2011, the Board of Trustees removed the "interim" tag from Erickson's title and formally named him as Penn State's president. It is very unusual for American universities, especially major research universities like Penn State, to promote someone to the presidency from within. However, several trustees felt that given the gravity of the sex abuse scandal, Erickson would provide a measure of stability. Additionally,

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...

economist David Breneman believed it unlikely "anybody worth getting" would even consider the post if Penn State mounted a national search. Terry Hartles of the American Council of Education believed that the move was necessary as the institution needed "stable, effective leadership" and not a year-long search for a successor. Erickson received support from trustees of the university, who complimented his knowledge of academic administration and openness. On January 10, 2012, Erickson announced that he would retire in June 2014 at the latest.AP, Penn State's Erickson to step down in 2014
/ref> A search for a successor ensued and on February 17, 2014,

Eric J. Barron Eric James Barron (born October 26, 1951) is an American academic administrator who was the 18th president of the Pennsylvania State University from 2014 until 2022. Previously, he was the 14th president of Florida State University and director ...

was announced as Penn State's next president. Erickson's last official duty as university president was presiding over the class of 2014 commencement, after which Barron assumed office as scheduled following Erickson's departure on May 12, 2014.

References

External links

Biography
at

Pennsylvania State University Libraries The Penn State University Libraries consists of 36 libraries at 22 locations in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The two main buildings on Penn State's University Park campus are the Pattee and Paterno libraries. History The library's first ...

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Rodney Erickson interviewed on ''Conversations from Penn State''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Erickson, Rodney Living people University of Minnesota alumni University of Washington College of Arts and Sciences alumni 1946 births People from Frederic, Wisconsin University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty Presidents of Pennsylvania State University Place of birth missing (living people)