For a guy nearing retirement, Penn State Alumni Association executive director Roger Williams certainly doesn’t look any less busy.
His office on the second floor of the Hintz Family Alumni Center is bustling with activity on a frigid Friday afternoon.
He’s got mounds of paperwork on his desk. The bookshelves are filled to the max. No packing has begun.
But Williams insists that it’s no ruse — he still plans on retiring on Tuesday, June 30.
“I’m going to be 66 in May, so I’m of that age,” Williams said during a recent interview in his office. “I’ve been in this job for 12 years. I came here in June of 2003. It’s been a long tenure, relatively speaking … and a very good one.”
For Williams, the last dozen years have gone by quickly, he said. During that time, the Alumni Association has seen unprecedented growth.
During Williams’ tenure as executive director, the Alumni Association grew by 27,759 members, nearly hitting 175,000 total dues-paying members in 2014, making it the largest such alumni association in the world. Williams saw increases of $2.9 million in revenue from 2004 to 2014, a 33 percent increase from the $8.6 million total a decade ago.
Williams is certainly proud of the growth.
“The Alumni Association is in good shape. Our membership continues to grow substantially over the years. We’ve put a number of new programs in place and our financial underpinnings are healthy. I think we’re striving to position ourselves so we can carry on our mission,” Williams says.
On paper, the numbers are impressive. Williams’ dynamic personality is a big part of that. However, that doesn’t mean change can’t be good. With that in mind, Williams believes it’s time to go.
“What really drove me to do this is that I just don’t want to go on and on forever. It’s not fair to the organization. You get to a point where it becomes time for the organization to refresh itself through new leadership at the top. I think this is a good time for new leadership to come in,” Williams says.
For Williams, it’s been a long and winding road — but Happy Valley has always been home.
He owns several degrees from Penn State — he has a bachelor’s degree in history, a master’s in journalism and a doctorate in higher education.
He first entered the world of education in 1978 as a writer for Penn State’s Department of Public Information. He rose through the ranks at Penn State at the start of his career, serving as the executive director of university relations from 1986 to 1995 before moving on to what he believed were greener pastures. He worked at two other universities — the University of Arkansas and Georgetown University — before eventually finishing his career right where he started, when he became the head of the Alumni Association in 2003.
The Alumni Association has always been near and dear to his heart. Over the past dozen years, Williams has watched it grow and expand.
There’s plenty to be proud of — and Williams is.
“We’ve been able to grow membership, which is very important. It’s probably been my top priority because it’s such a sign of organizational health. At the Penn State Alumni Association, we’re special because we are the largest dues-paying alumni association. That is our continuing gift to the university … that kind of stature is used by everybody at Penn State,” Williams says. “It’s used in the recruitment of students, it’s used in the recruitment of faculty, it’s used in the recruitment of student-athletes. You name it, it’s a real badge of distinction and pride for Penn State. It speaks volumes about the breadth and depth of support among our alumni for this university. It’s vitally important.”
Williams speaks passionately when he talks about Penn State. It’s clear that it’s more than a job, more than a university. The job is what drives him. When he started in 2003, he wanted to leave the Alumni Association in better shape than when he got here.
Mission accomplished.
“We are out there by ourselves as the world largest dues-paying alumni association. We don’t have any tail lights to follow,” he says. “We are the tail lights.”
As far as retirement is concerned, Williams admits that he doesn’t have some master plan. He has no designs on writing the great American novel or “un-retiring” in a few years to go back to work.
“I’m looking forward to not getting up at 6 a.m.,” Williams says with a laugh. “Aside from that, I don’t know. I’ll continue to be connected to Penn State.”
So, if you’re expecting Williams to put his house on the market and move to a warmer climate, think again.
“My wife is retiring in March and we’re going to continue to live in State College,” he says. “We’re not moving to Arizona or Florida or anything like that. I like snow. It doesn’t bother me.”
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