New president vows to run Lincoln University as a business

For Robert R. Jennings, the new president of Lincoln University, a college cannot be run as a scholarly sanctuary exempt from trends in the marketplace.

A university is a business.

"If you don't run it as a business - you'll run it out of business," said Jennings, 61, nearly a month into his tenure as the school's 13th president.

That approach, Jennings said, will be a key to his management of the nation's oldest historically black university. When Jennings talks about the school's future, his speech is peppered with terms like branding, marketing, and financial investment in the Chester County school.

He joins the university after serving in administrative posts at schools including Atlanta University, Norfolk State University in Virginia, and Wake Forest University in North Carolina.

He was president and CEO of Alabama A&M University in Normal, Ala., from 2005 to 2008. Jennings began his tenure there as an administrator charged with pulling the school out of debt and scandal, only to become embroiled in a drama of charges and countercharges over payments made to an executive assistant. The controversy resulted in his leaving the university.

"I learned from that situation, but I don't hold on to the past. I leave it in the past," Jennings said.

At Lincoln, Jennings must lead the university at a time when college budgets are reeling from cuts in government funding.

He has already met with state officials and is working on a plan to tap into alternative sources of revenue for the 2,240-student school, one of four state-related institutions in Pennsylvania.

"He's done a lot given that he's only been here three weeks," said Susan Safford, a biology professor and chief negotiator for the faculty union. Money is "the biggest challenge because without the funds, a lot of things aren't going to happen that you would like to see happen."

Other priorities include increasing enrollment and raising retention and graduation rates. Jennings also plans to increase the number of online course offerings. In addition, he will implement a capital campaign to boost the college's $26 million endowment.

He must tend to contract negotiations with the school's 106 full-time faculty members. The one-year extension of the faculty's earlier three-year contract expires in August.

Also, school officials are awaiting the resolution of a warning issued in November 2010 by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, which accredits the region's colleges and universities. The school was warned about "a lack of evidence" that it was in compliance with a standard requiring reports on student learning goals, methods of learning assessment, and evidence that the data are used to improve teaching and learning.

The university has submitted the required data, Jennings said. Representatives of the commission have told school officials that lifting the warning will be recommended at the commission's March meeting, Jennings said.

Before joining Lincoln, Jennings held executive positions with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in Washington and administrative posts at several universities.

He had wanted a career in education since a first-grade teacher inspired him and helped guide him through his school years in Atlanta.

"We all wanted to be like Ms. Jones," Jennings said.

He began his career as a preschool teacher, then taught elementary school before making the leap to government and higher education.

He earned a bachelor's degree in sociology from Morehouse College in Atlanta, a master's degree in educational psychology/elementary education at Atlanta University, and a doctorate in administration and policy studies, also at Atlanta University.

His most recent university post did not end happily.

The board of trustees at Alabama A&M University terminated his contract after accusing him of infractions that included paying an executive assistant for two weeks when the assistant was not at work. Jennings said the employee eventually performed the work.

Former trustee Oliver Washington 3d said the situation resulted from political infighting and was a pretext to get rid of Jennings by a group of trustees who had backed one of Jennings' competitors for the presidency.

"It was an orchestrated effort," Washington said.

Current trustee James Montgomery agreed.

"Certain board members never cooperated with him in any way," Montgomery said. "You could sense the animosity, and Dr. Jennings was very cooperative."

Both men described Jennings as a talented administrator who revised antiquated policies and raised millions.

Jennings sued the trustees to get his job back and for back pay, but the case was dismissed because of a state law that courts interpret as granting immunity to the board.

After that, Jennings focused on running Gems Inc., a family business that operates private schools and personal-care homes for the frail elderly.

In 2010, Jennings was a finalist for the presidency of Southern University in New Orleans. He was named to the Lincoln post in November.

Jennings plans to craft a vision of the school over the next 90 days.

"I'm going to talk to people, make an assessment of the data, give people a chance to respond, and then come forth with a vision," Jennings said. "That's what a good manager does."