SU President Honored as One of Maryland's Top 100 Women

SALISBURY, MD---For the second time in three years, Salisbury University President Janet Dudley-Eshbach has been recognized as one of Maryland’s Top 100 Women.

Among the honorees this year are U.S. Senator Barbara A. Mikulski and Maryland delegates Addie Eckardt, Sheila Hixson and Kathleen Dumais.

The award, bestowed by The Daily Record, a business-based newspaper in Baltimore, recognizes the outstanding achievements of professional women who reside or work in Maryland.  It is the 12th year the award has been given.  Dudley-Eshbach was also selected in 2005.

“I can unequivocally say that Salisbury University is different and better because of the leadership of President Janet Dudley-Eshbach,” wrote Delegate Addie Eckhardt (District 37B), who nominated the President.  “Strong leadership and vision are required to lead a complex organization, and it has been the resourcefulness and energy of President Dudley-Eshbach that have guided Salisbury University to become a Maryland institution of national distinction.”

During Dudley-Eshbach’s seven years of leadership, Salisbury University has grown considerably in size and reputation, earning recognition as a Maryland campus on the move.  Designated a “growth institution” by the University System of Maryland (USM), SU’s total student enrollment is expanding under her leadership to meet the needs of the state’s high school graduates.

At the same time the campus of some 7,300 students has seen its academic stature rise, earning accolades in publications such as Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine as a national best value, and placements in the Princeton Review’s The Best 361 Colleges and Kaplan’s Guide to the 367 Most Interesting Colleges.  With some of the highest graduation and retention rates in the USM, SU achieved its first top-tier ranking in U.S. News & World Report in 2003 under Dudley-Eshbach.  This year it is ranked as the fifth best public university-master’s category, in the North.

Dudley-Eshbach has led the University in new directions through a series of initiatives, including expanding shared governance, increasing diversity among students, faculty and staff, and improving town-gown relations.

A Latin American scholar who is fluent in Spanish, the President is a champion of international study for students, founding the Center for International Education to increase opportunities for study abroad in all academic disciplines.

Under her leadership the campus became the first in the USM to institute a pilot study making the SAT optional for new students with a high school grade point average of 3.5 or higher.

During her presidency, Dudley-Eshbach oversaw the opening of one of the largest science facilities in the state, Henson Science Hall, and has been key in the development of the $54.7 million Teacher Education and Technology Center, scheduled to open in 2008, a showcase building for education in Maryland and the mid-Atlantic region.

SU recently received the largest single gift in its history, $8 million from the Arthur W. Perdue Foundation toward a new home for the Franklin P. Perdue School of Business; and $5.3 million from the late Lucy Tull of Salisbury, the largest gift from an individual in SU history.  The Tull bequest benefits nursing and other health care professions on campus.

Dudley-Eshbach became the eighth president of Salisbury University in June 2000, the first woman to hold the office in the University's 75-year history. Prior to her appointment, she served as president of Fairmont State College in West Virginia and held faculty and administrative positions at three colleges and universities. She earned her Ph.D. from El Colegio de Mexico in 1986.

The Daily Record created Maryland’s Top 100 Women to draw attention to the contributions being made by women throughout the state. This annual program is designed to recognize both professional success and contributions bettering Maryland’s communities.  It also recognizes those who play an active role in mentoring the younger generation.

This year’s recipients will be honored at an awards ceremony 5 p.m. Monday, May 7, at the Meyerhoff Symphony Hall in Baltimore.

For more information call 410-543-6030 or visit the SU Web site at www.salisbury.edu.