February 10, 2023
Shawnee State University President Jeff Bauer announced today he will retire as the university’s seventh president at the end of the academic year, June 30, 2023. The SSU Board of Trustees appointed Eric Braun as Interim President effective July 1, 2023.
“President Bauer’s 36-year commitment to Shawnee State and its success is remarkable,” David Furbee, Chair of the Shawnee State University Board of Trustees, said. “On behalf of the trustees, I want to share our gratitude for his leadership over the past five years as the institution faced challenges unlike those met at any other time in its history.”
Bauer was appointed President of Shawnee State in 2018 after more than ten years in leadership positions, including Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, and 26 years in the classroom.
“This decision is bittersweet and marks the end of an incredible era in my professional and personal life,” Bauer said in a message to campus. “Southern Ohio became home for me and my wife, Jeril, in 1987 when I first joined Shawnee State to teach geology. It has been my sincere pleasure to be part of the Shawnee State story and a part of this community.”
Bauer said that Spring Commencement will be his last official event as President.
“Each time I hand a diploma to a student, I know the impact of that degree,” he said. “I’m reminded of that impact when I see those same graduates serving critical roles in our local schools, hospitals and businesses. I’m looking forward to watching the University and community continue to grow and thrive under new leadership.”
Portsmouth native Eric Braun, Shawnee State’s Vice President for Advancement and Enrollment Management, will become Interim President with the beginning of the institution’s fiscal year July 1, 2023.
“The trustees are confident in Interim President Braun’s demonstrated ability to strengthen the institution and its service to the region as we move forward together,” Furbee said.
Braun joined Shawnee State in 2009. A graduate of Wake Forest University in North Carolina where he earned his undergraduate and law degrees and remains admitted to practice in state and federal court, he is scheduled to earn his doctorate in organizational development this fall from Vanderbilt University.
Braun was appointed by Governor Kasich in 2014 to the Ohio Tuition Trust Authority, a board that provides investment oversight of Ohio’s 529 college savings program with over $9B under management at the time. He was elected Executive Chairman in 2015 and served until 2018.
He currently serves on the Ohio Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, the OhioMeansJobs WIOA Workforce Development Area 1 Board, and the OhioX public policy committee. Braun is a member of the Scioto County Bar Association, the Portsmouth Elks Lodge and a past president of the Rotary Club of Portsmouth.