Horner has served as president since 1987. During his tenure, university enrollment has grown to 3,000 students with the school employing more than 500 full- and part-time faculty and staff.
“President Horner’s tenure as president has been marked by tremendous accomplishment,” states a news release from the university’s communications department. “David and Sue Horner (who has contributed as a professor, scholar and ambassador for the University in addition to her support of David as presidential spouse) have brought both dedication and a high degree of professionalism to their challenging roles. David joined North Park at a very difficult moment in our history. His improvements and innovations touched every corner of the university.”
Accomplishments during Horner’s tenure at North Park include:
- Tripling of enrollment since 1990
- Frequent listing as one of America’s best universities in U.S. News & World Report
- Creation of adult degree completion program and graduate programs in business, nonprofit management, nursing, education, community development and music
- Construction of Anderson Chapel, Brandel Library and Holmgren Athletic Complex
- Launching of the most aggressive campus building campaign in North Park’s history – $50 million in campus enhancements during the next five years
- Creation of new cultural studies centers in Africana, Latino, Middle Eastern and Korean studies to complement the existing Center for Scandinavian Studies
- Growth of the institutional endowment from $7.6 million in 1987 to more than $35 million in 2004
The Board of Trustees has begun the process of selecting a successor. An 11-member search committee will be formed that includes seven board members, two faculty members and two students. A national search process will be undertaken utilizing a search firm experienced in higher education searches. Interim governance, structured by the Board of Trustees in consultation with Horner, will include current university leadership with details to be announced toward the end of the fall semester.
Prior to beginning his duties at North Park, Horner held a variety of senior positions in both academic and business fields. A former management consultant with KPMG Peat Marwick, Horner served six years (1979 to 1985) as president of Barrington College in Barrington, Rhode Island, making him at that time the youngest college or university president (age 29) in the United States.
Horner has taught in areas of business policy, business ethics and the management of educational institutions at a number of institutions, including the Harvard Graduate School of Education. He has served in volunteer leadership roles and/or on the boards of numerous organizations and institutions, including the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin, the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities, Gordon College, the Providence Country Day School and the Stony Brook School.
He received a bachelor of arts in philosophy, summa cum laude, from Barrington College; a master of arts in philosophy from the University of Rhode Island; a master of business administration from the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University, and a doctorate in higher education administration and policy analysis from the School of Education at Stanford.
Copyright © 2011 The Evangelical Covenant Church.
