Arend Donselaar "Don" Lubbers (born July 23, 1931) was president of
Grand Valley State University (and predecessor Grand Valley State College) from 1969 to 2001. He was the second president of Grand Valley, serving after
James Zumberge and before
Mark Murray. He currently holds the title of President
Emeritus. Most of the university's growth came during his tenure.
Early life
Lubbers graduated from
Hope College
Hope College is a private Christian liberal arts college in Holland, Michigan. It was originally opened in 1851 as the Pioneer School by Dutch immigrants four years after the community was first settled. The first freshman college class matricu ...
, where his father
Irwin Lubbers was president, and received his master's degree from
Rutgers University
Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...
in 1956.
He taught at
Wittenberg University
Wittenberg University is a private liberal arts college in Springfield, Ohio. It has 1,326 full-time students representing 33 states and 9 foreign countries. Wittenberg University is associated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ...
.
He served as president of
Central College in
Pella, Iowa
Pella is a city in Marion County, Iowa, Marion County, Iowa, United States, with a population of 10,464 at the time of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census. Founded by immigrants from the Netherlands, it is forty miles southeast of Des ...
, until he became Grand Valley's president.
Grand Valley State University
Lubbers became president of what was then Grand Valley State College at the age of 37, making him one of the nation's youngest university presidents.
The university expanded from a small cluster of colleges to Michigan's fastest growing university.
Lubbers Stadium
Lubbers Stadium, or Arend D. Lubbers Stadium, is a stadium on the Grand Valley State University's main campus in Allendale, Michigan, USA. The stadium was named after former university president Arend Lubbers. It is primarily used for America ...
on the
Allendale Campus is named for him.
When he retired in 2001, Lubbers was the longest serving state university leader in the country.
References
Grand Valley History pageRetirement press release
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lubbers, Arend
Presidents of Grand Valley State University
Living people
1931 births
Central College (Iowa) people
Hope College alumni
Wittenberg University