In an announcement received by faculty, staff and students of Southwest Minnesota State University Monday, April 21, Provost Dr. Beth Weatherby shared that she will be moving on from her position after 22 years of service.
Before starting at SMSU, Dr. Weatherby received her B.S. in journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism in Illinois and received a Doctor of Arts in English and Creative Writing from University of New York-Albany. Shortly after, she arrived at SMSU in 1992 as an assistant professor of English and also led the Creative Writing program until 2000.
During this time, Dr. Weatherby collaborated with others to help the program grow and also worked as director of the Marshall Festival with over 150 volunteers and 90 Minnesota writers.
She began her term as interim dean in 2002 and became the permanent Dean of the College of the Arts, Letters and Sciences in 2004. She held this position until 2007, where she would then become the Provost.
In collaboration with others, the Provost would work to see the transformation of the liberal arts core program as well as the upgrading of various campus facilities.
In her last semester, the Provost will continue her work and prepare for the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) Accreditation in October and will also work with faculty on new programs that will “attract students and grow enrollments.”
Dr. Weatherby will officially end her term at SMSU later this December, in which she shares that she is leaving the next phase of her life “wide open” and that she would like to catch up on her reading and writing.
“I’ve worked since I was 13,” Dr. Weatherby laughs. “I’m giving myself a break to just pause and think about the next phase of my life…a time for reflection.”
Dr. Weatherby shares that she has enjoyed working with staff, faculty, and administrative members and has also found it “rewarding working with students everyday in an environment all about students.”
“Working in three different positions has given me an increasingly comprehensive perspective on the university. It’s been rewarding working with students and seeing what happens here as students progress. I worked with wonderful people and I will miss working with them,” Dr. Weatherby said.
