|
|
News |
Michael D. Chason |
IMMEDIATE JUNE 27,
2006
CALL TO RETIRE FROM ABAC AFTER 25 YEARS
TIFTON-- Tom Call has held many positions at Abraham
Baldwin College as an educator, but none as important as his interim
presidency which has stretched almost two years after former president Mike
Vollmer left the post in September, 2004. On Friday, Call will walk
out of the president's office into retirement after 25 years of loyal service.
“The most challenging thing as
interim president was trying to follow the previous president,” Call
said. “Everything was running so smoothly, and I wanted to maintain that
order.”
During his time at the ABAC helm, his
impressions of the role he was selected to serve did not change. “I knew what I
was getting into and had an idea of what needed to be done,” Call said.
What did change, however, was the
perspective. “The perspective changed when the time originally allotted as
Interim President was lengthened,” Call said. “We didn’t just sit on our hands.
We kept ABAC moving in every aspect that we could to make it that much more
comfortable for the next president of the college.”
During the past two years, ABAC has
installed a new phone system called Voice Over Internet Protocol, almost
completed construction on the new Health Sciences Building, brought men’s golf
back to the intercollegiate sports scene, completed the Master Plan, and
achieved a landmark in the college's history by being selected for State
College status within the University System of Georgia.
“The most gratifying thing for me
was working with the alumni and seeing their love for this institution,"
Call said. "Before taking this post, I worked 100 percent
with the students so I got to see a different perspective on how ABAC impacts
people.”
Call said what he will miss more than
anything is the people. “You can’t work with a ton of people for years and not
get attached,” Call said. “It’s a really good community to work with, and
ABAC is a great institution.”
Dr. David Bridges was selected as ABAC’s
10th president in May and will take over the position upon Call’s retirement.
“There is no doubt in my mind that ABAC is in very capable hands,” Call said of
Bridges. “I know the future is bright for ABAC.”
Once Call retires, he plans to do some
traveling, including a visit to
Call joined the ABAC faculty as an
instructor in the Division of Agriculture and Forest Resources in 1981.
He was promoted to Assistant Professor in 1985 and became an Associate
Professor in 1993. In the summer of 1994, Call served as Acting Chair of
the division.
In 1995, Call was selected as Interim
Registrar. He became Registrar in 1996. In 2001, Call became the
Interim Vice President for Student and Enrollment Services. In
2003, Call was selected for the Vice President’s position.
Before coming to ABAC, he worked for the
# # #