By William Hamilton
PBN Staff Writer
PROVIDENCE – John Nazarian, Rhode Island College’s longest-serving president, has announced that he will retire at the end of the 2007-08 school year.
Nazarian, 75, has been the college’s president since 1990 but his association with the school dates back to 1950, when he enrolled as a student of what then was known as Rhode Island College of Education. Named an instructor of math and physics when he graduated in 1954, he has served as a member of the faculty or administrator over the years before he was appointed president.
“I have experienced [RIC’s] transformation from a teachers’ college to the great institution that it is today – serving the citizens of the state of Rhode Island,” Nazarian said in a news release, adding that he considers his 57-year career at RIC to have been a “privilege.”
His departure is set for June of next year. “He’s been thinking about it, and he decided it was time to do it,” said Jane Fusco, a RIC spokesperson.
According to RIC, Nazarian was raised in Pawtucket. As a youngster, he wanted to be a concert violinist, but when he failed to win a full scholarship to the New England Conservatory of Music, he instead chose to attend RIC and become a teacher.
Nazarian moved through the ranks of the RIC faculty, eventually becoming a full professor, in 1971, and serving as acting chairman of the mathematics department and the first associate dean of arts and sciences.
He became a member of the RIC administration in 1972, when he was named special assistant to the president for planning. He later held several vice president positions and in the 1980s, served as acting college president for two years, until the position was filled by Hartford University provost Carol Guardo.
After Guardo resigned in 1990, Nazarian was eventually named the eighth president of the school. The college’s Center for Performing Arts, completed in 2000, was named in his honor.
“John Nazarian’s presence is evident everywhere on this campus,” Fusco said in a statement. “He is Rhode Island College’s greatest advocate, supporter and friend. His legacy is unmatched.”
