May 30, 2018
Dr. Dale-Elizabeth Pehrsson named president of Clarion University of Pennsylvania
Contact: Kevin Hensil, khensil@passhe.edu
Harrisburg – The Board of Governors of Pennsylvania’s State System of Higher Education today unanimously selected Dr. Dale-Elizabeth Pehrsson, dean of the College of Education and Human Services at Central Michigan University, to be the next president of Clarion University of Pennsylvania, effective July 1.
Dr. Pehrsson has been in her current role since 2012. She has more than 25 years of
experience in higher education, beginning her academic career as an affiliate faculty
member and clinical supervisor for counselor education at Idaho State University in
1991. She also has worked in the healthcare field, as both a counselor and registered
nurse.
“Dr. Pehrsson has an extraordinary range of professional experience, as a teacher,
practitioner and administrator in both higher education and healthcare,” said Board
of Governors Chairwoman Cynthia D. Shapira. “Her extensive background and commitment
to students will serve Clarion University well as it strives to advance its mission
of serving students, the community and the Commonwealth.”
As dean of the College of Education and Human Services at Central Michigan, Dr. Pehrsson
serves as the college’s chief executive and academic officer, initiating new programs,
including the expansion of international programs, while advancing scholarship, research
and other creative activity. She is responsible for recruitment, retention and advancement
of faculty and oversees an annual budget of $40 million. She supervises five academic
units; 10 education, service and research centers; and more than 230 faculty and staff.
“Dr. Pehrsson has a unique set of tools that makes her an ideal fit for Clarion University
and its focus on professional programs,” said State System Interim Chancellor Karen
M. Whitney, who served as Clarion’s president for seven years before assuming her
current role in September. “They are a perfect match. I am certain Dale will be a
great addition to both Clarion University and the State System. I am thrilled that
she will be joining our leadership team.”
Dr. Pehrsson said she is excited about the opportunity to serve as Clarion’s next
president.
“I am highly honored to have been chosen as the 17th president of Clarion University,”
she said. “The strengths of the faculty, staff, community and stakeholders are inspiring.
I will seek and welcome advice and support from all constituents. Clarion University
has a strong reputation and I look forward to building on our long tradition of excellent
teaching and service to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.”
The Board’s action today comes at the conclusion of a national search for a successor
to Dr. Whitney. Peter Fackler is serving as the university’s interim president and
will remain in that role until Dr. Pehrsson’s arrival on campus.
“We are elated to welcome Dr. Dale Pehrsson as Clarion University’s next president,”
said JD Dunbar, chairwoman of the university’s Council of Trustees. “She has demonstrated
the measure of her mettle as a transformative leader. Her academic credentials cover
an oeuvre of majors that resonate with Clarion University’s strengths. She is equally
responsive in ‘friend-raising’ as she has been in fundraising.”
Dunbar thanked search committee chair Milissa Bauer and the other members of the search
committee, as well as “all of the students, faculty and staff who participated in
the process.”
Bauer praised the president-select’s commitment to student success, citing specifically
her efforts in “establishing creative initiatives to both recruit and retain students,”
and mentioned how well, as a first-generation college student herself, Dr. Pehrsson
will relate to many Clarion students.
“She epitomizes the American Dream through education, by first getting associate degrees
in liberal arts and nursing, then returning to school to earn progressive degrees,
including a doctorate in education,” Bauer said. “Dr. Pehrsson also has experience
as the chief operating officer of a hospital, a mental health counselor and as a business
owner. Her leadership style will allow her to relate well with our students, our faculty
and our entire university community.”
Dr. Pehrsson has a Bachelor of Science degree in liberal studies from the University
of State of New York-Albany. She also earned a Master of Education degree in curriculum,
instruction and supervision, a Master of Counseling degree, and a Doctor of Education
degree in counselor education and counseling, all from Idaho State University. She
also has associate degrees in nursing and liberal arts.
In addition to her ongoing role as dean at Central Michigan, Dr. Pehrsson also spent
a year as a presidential fellow with the American Council of Education, working directly
with the president at Misericordia University in Dallas, Pa. The fellowship focused
on faculty and staff development, Board of Trustees relations, fundraising and capital
campaigns, finance, accreditation, inclusive excellence, advancing technology, strategic
planning, community engagement and service learning.
Prior to her arrival at Central Michigan, Dr. Pehrsson spent five years at the University
of Nevada, Las Vegas. She was hired as an associate professor in the Department of
Counselor Education; and, after three years, was promoted to professor. She later
served as department chair and then as associate dean of the College of Education.
Dr. Pehrsson previously served as a tenured faculty member at Oregon State University,
where she served as a counselor educator in both the Master of Arts in Teaching and
Master of Science in counselor education programs. She was an adjunct faculty member
at Portland State University in Oregon and an assistant professor at Sam Houston State
University in Texas.
While at Idaho State University, she also worked as an elementary school counselor
in the Snake River School District and as a child and family counselor in Pocatello,
Idaho. She served as a career and personal counselor and founded The Learning Connection-Literacy
and Learning Disability Clinic in Pocatello. She was chief operating officer for patient
and clinical services at Bingham Memorial Hospital in Blackfoot, Idaho; associate
director of nursing and patient services and captain of the maternal transport life
flight team at Bannock Regional Medical Center in Pocatello; and a registered nurse
at the Lexington School for the Deaf in New York City.
Dr. Pehrsson is a licensed and nationally certified counselor and a member of various
professional organizations. She served for two years as president of the Michigan
Council of Deans for Education at State Colleges and Universities and remains a member
of the group’s Leadership Council. She has authored or co-authored numerous scholarly
publications, including a peer-reviewed book titled Core Issues in Child Counseling.
Clarion University, which is celebrating its sesquicentennial, enrolls about 5,200
students. It offers more than 100 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in business,
education, health, science and the arts. It opened in 1867 as the Carrier Seminary
of Western Pennsylvania. It was converted to Clarion Normal School in 1887 and became
a university in 1983, upon the creation of the State System.