DULUTH — Lake Superior College President Patricia Rogers announced her intent to retire at the end of the 2024-25 academic year.
Rogers has been at LSC's helm for five years, paving the school's way forward through the COVID-19 pandemic and challenges with declining enrollment. She will officially step down June 30, when her contract with the school expires.
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"I have loved working with the dedicated faculty and staff at LSC because of their focus on student success," Rogers said in an emailed statement Thursday. "I look forward to another, final rewarding year and transitioning the college to its next leader who will take LSC to even higher levels of excellence."
After joining LSC in 2019, Rogers claimed oversight of many of the college's key infrastructural projects as part of a facilities update, including the creation of a student study lounge and remodeling of the main library. She also opened a Center for Equity and Inclusion and the Aspirus St. Luke’s Piedmont clinic. A big project for Rogers was the completion of an major roof replacement, which she called "long overdue."
The focus on facilities began as a strategy to shore up enrollment, which took a dip during the pandemic. According to Rogers, enrollment is on its way back up. She's looking forward to the students coming back next week and said she's going to miss them the most when she retires. "I'm just going to enjoy them all as much as I can this coming year," Rogers said.
On July 1, Rogers plans to sleep in. Then, she's thinking about going back to digital photography, her longtime passion.
"This place is a jewel," Rogers said. "I'm leaving the institution in a healthy way. I think our team is strong. My cabinet team is strong, they know what they're doing. I couldn't be in a better spot."
Minnesota State Chancellor Scott Olson will help lead the search for a Rogers' successor, with the goal of securing a candidate by early spring. He'll be making rounds to LSC in November to speak with students, faculty, staff and community members to learn about their hopes for LSC's future.
Olson has worked with Rogers since she served as provost of Winona State University before joining LSC.
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"Whether as a faculty member or as president, she has been driven by her commitment to students and to the many colleagues across our system that she has worked with," Olson said in the statement. "The number of Minnesotans she has inspired and encouraged over her career — be they students, colleagues, or community members — is uncountable. We have all benefitted from her work. We will miss her greatly!"
This story was updated at 2:16 p.m. Aug. 22 with quotes from Patricia Rogers. It was originally posted at 11:05 a.m. Aug. 22.
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