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Gaber starts year strong at University of Toledo

Trevor Stearns, News Editor

As the new school year begins to unfold, President Sharon Gaber is revealing her plans for the University of Toledo.

Over the summer, Gaber said she accomplished a lot, ranging from interacting with the community leaders to increasing UT’s prominence overall.

“Since starting at UT in July, I’ve had the opportunity to meet hundreds of community leaders, elected officials and UT students, faculty, staff, alumni and administrators,” Gaber wrote in an email interview. “I’ve been doing a lot of listening and I’ve been talking about the goals I have to elevate UT on a national stage.”

Gaber explained some of her plans for the university this year in her address letter. She wrote of making sure enrolling students are academically prepared, increasing externally-funded research and reducing administrative costs to keep finances down for students.

“In the coming months, we will begin a formal, strategic planning process that will depend upon substantial campus input and feedback to develop the necessary steps to achieve these goals and move UT forward,” Gaber wrote. “The faculty, staff and students are critically important to our collective success.”

Along with working on her goals for the year, Gaber also made a number of staff changes, including hiring a new chief of staff, breaking certain jobs into two separate positions, merging other jobs and bringing in some fresh talent.

It was eventually decided that the divisions of External Affairs and Institutional Advancement would merge together to form the Division of Advancement.

Sam McCrimmon, vice president for advancement, was hired from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and is working on making UT more visible in the eyes of donors, students and supporters alike.

“My primary responsibility is to elevate the philanthropic standing and reputation of the University of Toledo nationally and internationally by increasing UT’s visibility to potential donors, prospective students and UT supporters,” McCrimmon said.

According to McCrimmon, the merging of these two divisions is a “key component of achieving that success for UT.”

McCrimmon also said his past experiences in both fundraising and alumni relations will help him achieve the goals he has for this year.

Along with hiring McCrimmon, Gaber also moved Matt Schroeder to chief of staff after working as chief operating officer for the UT Foundation. Frank Calzonetti was hired as vice president for government relations as well. According to Calzonetti, Gaber was working hard even before her time in office at UT began, and she has discussed her plans with multiple groups of people.

“Since President Gaber began her tenure at UT on July 1 — and even in the months before — she has been actively sharing her vision with elected officials, community leaders and UT community members,” Calzonetti wrote in an email interview. “She is in the process of pulling the various internal and external constituencies of UT together as we begin a new era for the university.”

While only being at UT for a few months, Gaber has enjoyed the time she’s spent here and over the coming months, she hopes to show just what UT truly has to offer.

“I joined the University of Toledo because I see what you see: a strong university with an incredible potential for greatness,” Gaber wrote. “I am proud to be a part of this community and am grateful for the warm welcome I have received.”

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