WORCESTER, MA - Assumption College's Board of Trustees has announced the appointment of Dr. Thomas R. Plough of Fargo, North Dakota to serve as the College's fifteenth president. The decision was made following a six month process that included a nationwide search. Dr. Plough will assume office on July 1, 1998. Dr. Plough will succeed Dr. Joseph H. Hagan who served as Assumption's president for twenty years and was elected President Emeritus by the Board of Trustees upon his departure from office on December 31, 1997. Very Rev. John L. Franck, A.A., chairman of the College's Board of Trustees and chairman of the Search Committee said, "Dr. Plough is an experienced educator and administrator.
Dr. Plough impressed the trustees as someone who understands and shares their commitment to Assumption College's mission as a Catholic, liberal arts institution." In a message sent to the campus community announcing Dr. Plough's appointment, Fr. Franck said, "Yesterday afternoon I received the welcome news that Dr. Thomas Plough had accepted our invitation to become the next president of Assumption College. Last Friday I read the article which appeared in the Worcester Telegram and Gazette describing the attempts being made by North Dakota State University students and faculty to convince Dr. Plough that he should stay at their institution, so much had he done for them during the past three years. The reasons for which North Dakota State students and faculty camped out on Dr. Plough's yard are the very reasons that caught the attention of the Assumption College Community. Dr. Plough is a man of quiet strength, extraordinary integrity, and wide experience. He has been able, both at North Dakota State and RIT, to move these institutions forward by building community and inviting individuals to the excellence of which they are capable."
Dr. Plough earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees at Michigan State University. From 1966 - 1971, Dr. Plough served as Dean of Students at Alma College in Michigan. From 1972 to 1995 he held various administrative positions and was a tenured professor of sociology at Rochester Institute of Technology. The positions included Associate Vice President, Provost, and Executive Vice President. Dr. Plough left RIT in 1995 to become President of North Dakota State University in Fargo. As President of North Dakota State University since 1995, Dr. Plough has been heavily involved in local and state affairs, especially state economic development and the development of rural families and communities. Dr. Plough oversees one of the most successful Division II athletic programs with one of the highest graduation rates in the United States. He has a successful record of fundraising both at RIT and at North Dakota State University.
The appointment of Dr. Plough comes at a time in Assumption's history marked by solid finances, growing enrollment, increased fundraising, and greater recognition both regionally and nationally. "Assumption College is at a turning point in its history, " said Fr. John Franck. "The College is poised to move to new and unprecedented levels of academic excellence, enrollment, fundraising and institutional recognition. Years of prudent fiscal management have created this opportunity for the College. The Board of Trustees is particularly grateful that Dr. Plough has accepted our invitation to lead Assumption into the 21st century and to prepare for the College's centennial in 2004." The presidential search was led by the chairman of the Board of Trustees, Fr. John L. Franck, A.A., with assistance from Dr. Allen Koenig of R.H. Perry and Associates of Columbus, Ohio and Washington, D.C.
Assumption College is a selective, Catholic college that offers a variety of liberal arts and career-oriented majors. Located on 150 wooded acres in Central Massachusetts, Assumption is within close driving distance of Boston, Providence, Hartford, and Springfield. The College enrolls approximately 1,800 students in the undergraduate school and 1,000 students in the evening and graduate schools. Assumption College is ranked in the top tier of northern colleges and universities by U.S. News and World Report. It is one of only six colleges in Massachusetts to be listed in Barron's Best Buys in College Education.