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 university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

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 was forced to resign in the wake of the Penn State sex abuse scandal, after which the "interim" tag was removed later that month. The Food Science 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 Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

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

geography Geography (from Ancient Greek ; combining 'Earth' and 'write', literally 'Earth writing') is the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding o ...

from the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

in 1973. After a brief tenure at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, he came to Penn State as an assistant professor of geography and

business administration Business administration is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. Overview The administration of a business includes the performance o ...

. 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 university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

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 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 *
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)