President David Eisler has chosen to withdraw his name from consideration for the presidential position at Northern Kentucky University.
Eisler, now entering his tenth year of leading FSU, was one of the three finalists for the position at NKU.
Upon receiving phone calls and letters from numerous community and FSU members, Eisler was grateful for their thoughts, as he said the support shown was big in the decision making process. He shared a responding statement with the public.
“The past two weeks have been a challenging time for our family as we worked to determine our future path and direction. We never expected the outpouring of support both my spouse Patsy and I have received from so many people throughout our campus and the many communities Ferris serves. We want to thank each and every person who called, wrote or shared these thoughts with us. We feel the same way about all of you.
“At this point I do not know if a decision has been made on the position at Northern Kentucky University, but I want to share with you that we have made our decision and chosen to remain at Ferris State University. As we considered leaving, it became increasingly clear we did not want to do so. The people here and our unique educational mission are too important and dear to us. Through these past weeks, we have learned that our place is at Ferris. Based on this experience we have also decided that we will not consider another presidency either now or in the future. It is an honor to serve as the president of Ferris State University. I look forward to working with you in the years ahead as we continue to build this great University and to help shape Michigan’s future.”
Danielle Leisner, a junior in communication, thinks Eisler made a great decision for him as well as the university.
“I think he stayed because his heart is in it for the right reasons. I am glad he is staying and I think that FSU will continue to grow and be represented in a positive light,” Leisner said. “I think that he genuinely cares about the future of Ferris and would like to continue leading the university in that direction.”
While Eisler has been president of FSU, enrollment has grown from 11,074 to 14,560 students.
“I’m hopeful we can continue to improve retention and graduation rates and have success in limiting student debt. We’re building a great university and it is an honor to be a part of it,” Eisler said. “There is a very exciting future ahead for Ferris and we very much want to be a part of it. We were in the position where we had the opportunity to choose, and we chose Ferris.” n