Anita Olson Gustafson (born March 3, 1961) is an American historian and academic administrator who is the 20th and current president of

Presbyterian College Presbyterian College (PC) is a private liberal arts college in Clinton, South Carolina, United States. It was founded in 1880 and is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). History Presbyterian College was founded in 1880 by Willia ...

Clinton, South Carolina Clinton is a city in Laurens County, South Carolina, Laurens County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 8,490 as of the United States Census, 2010, 2010 census. It is part of the Greenville, South Carolina, Greenville–Mauldin ...

. She took office on August 1, 2023, and was most recently the dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at

Mercer University Mercer University is a Private university, private Research university, research university in Macon, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1833 as Mercer Institute and gaining university status in 1837, it is the oldest private university in the s ...

Macon, Georgia Macon ( ), officially Macon–Bibb County, is a consolidated city-county in Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. Situated near the Atlantic Seaboard fall line, fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is southeast of Atlanta and near the ...

Early life and education

Gustafson was born Anita Ruth Olson on March 3, 1961; she is a native of

Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale ( ) is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and most populous city in Broward County, Florida, Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the ...

. She attended

North Park University North Park University is a private Christian university in Chicago, Illinois. It was founded in 1891 by the Evangelical Covenant Church. It is located on Chicago's north side in the North Park community area and enrolls more than 2,600 undergr ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, where she received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree in economics and Swedish, before earning a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

and a Ph.D. from

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

Evanston, Illinois Evanston is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, situated on the North Shore (Chicago), North Shore along Lake Michigan. A suburb of Chicago, Evanston is north of Chicago Loop, downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skok ...

. She was named a Northwestern University Dissertation Fellow in 1988.

Career

Gustafson began teaching history at

, in 1997. She was chair of the history department from 2000 to 2004, and was professor of the year in 2007, the same year she received the South Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities Excellence in Teaching Award. She was interim dean of academic programs at Presbyterian from 2005 to 2007 and was interim

provost Provost may refer to: Officials Ecclesiastic * Provost (religion), a high-ranking church official * Prince-provost, a high-ranking church official Government * Provost (civil), an officer of local government, including the equivalent ...

for a two-year stint from 2010 to 2012. On March 25, 2016, Gustafson was named dean of the

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, effective August 1 of that year. She replaced Lake Lambert, who left the job to take the presidency of Hanover University. In addition to leading the college, she taught in the history department. After Presbyterian College president Matthew vandenBerg announced his intention to step down, the school began a national search that concluded on June 27, 2023, with an announcement that Gustafson would be the school's 20th president, effective August 1, 2023. She is the first female president in the college's history. She was formally inaugurated on April 26, 2024.

Work and research

Gustafson's work focuses largely on the history of Swedish immigration, particularly into the United States, and

Swedish-American Swedish Americans () are Americans of Swedish descent. The history of Swedish Americans dates back to the early colonial times, with notable migration waves occurring in the 19th and early 20th centuries and approximately 1.2 million arrivi ...

communities in the United States. Her manuscript, ''Swedish Chicago: The Shaping of an Immigrant Community, 1880–1920'', was published by

Northern Illinois University Press Northern Illinois University Press is a publisher affiliated with Northern Illinois University and owned by Cornell University Press. The press publishes about twenty new books per year in history, politics, anthropology, and literature, with abou ...

on December 14, 2018.

Personal life

Gustafson and her husband have one son.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gustafson, Anita 1961 births Living people American academic administrators American historians Mercer University faculty North Park University alumni Northwestern University alumni Writers from Fort Lauderdale, Florida Presbyterian College faculty Presidents of Presbyterian College American people of Swedish descent