Jack Russell Nelson (December 18, 1929 – March 23, 2016) was an American educator who served as a chancellor/president of the

University of Colorado Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a public research university in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a state, it is the flagship university of the University of Colorado syst ...

and

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

in Tempe,

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

Life

Nelson earned his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in business and economics from

Pacific Union College Pacific Union College (PUC) is a private university, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Angwin, California. It is the only four-year college in Napa County, California, Napa County. It is a coeducational r ...

Napa Valley Napa Valley is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) located in Napa County in California's Wine Country. It was established by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) on January 27, 1981. Napa Valley is considered one of the premier ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, and a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

and

Ph.D A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...

in finance from the

University of California Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

.Preliminary Inventory of the Office of the President Records, 1931–1991 (J. Russell Nelson), Arizona State University)
/ref> From 1961-1970, Nelson served as an associate professor in finance at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

. In 1970, Nelson moved to become vice provost and professor in finance at the

. During his first stint at the university he was rapidly promoted, to associate provost (in 1971), vice president for budgets and planning (1972–74), vice president of administration (1974–77) until becoming acting chancellor in 1977 and chancellor in 1978.

ASU presidency

In 1981, Nelson became the fourteenth president of

.The New ASU Story: J. Russell Nelson
/ref> Under Nelson, the university focused on education, upgrading its computer infrastructure, and expanding to a second campus. Nelson's presidency was marked by a combative tenure with the athletics department, which fell into disrepute after losing seasons and ethics scandals. However, Nelson oversaw the construction of the

Karsten Golf Course ASU Karsten Golf Course was a classic designed links-style golf course in Tempe, Arizona, located on the campus of Arizona State University. Designed by noted course architect Pete Dye, it opened for play in September 1989 and is the home venue ...

and started the first efforts to bring a Super Bowl to the Phoenix area. In 1988, the Arizona Board of Regents authorized funding for a ''Computing and Network Services Building'', which was billed as a "computing union" for students to have access to technology for their classes. The building did not break ground until February 1991, two years after Nelson departed the university. Nelson also brought the university to western Maricopa County, a vision first seen by

G. Homer Durham George Homer Durham (February 4, 1911 – January 10, 1985) was an American academic administrator and was a general authority of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1977 until his death. Early life Durham was born ...

in the 1960s. ASU West opened in 1984, and ground was broken in 1986 on the permanent campus facility. The university also grew more adept at fundraising. In 1984, work was completed on an expansion to the College of Business Administration and a new research building for the school of engineering. Initiated in the late 1980s, the Campaign for ASU raised more than $75 million and led to the construction of a profusion of new buildings toward the end of Nelson's tenure, including an expanded Hayden Library, a second Memorial Union expansion and an additional building for the College of Architecture. One of these buildings, the Fine Arts Center designed by

Antoine Predock Antoine Predock ( ; born 1936 in Lebanon, Missouri) is an American architect based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He is the principal of Antoine Predock Architect PC, the studio he founded in 1967. Predock first gained national attention with the La ...

, was named for Nelson and his wife Bonita. Research grants also doubled from 1981 to 1989. Nelson resigned in 1989 to return to Boulder and lead CU's College of Business Administration.ASU Insight, July 3, 1989
/ref> Richard Peck, a former English professor and then-provost and vice president of academic affairs, was named as interim president, serving until the installation of

Lattie F. Coor Lattie Finch Coor Jr. (born September 26, 1936) is an American academic specialising in public policy and the past president of two universities. He was the 15th President of Arizona State University (1990–2002) and the 21st President of the ...

on January 1, 1990. Nelson retired from academia in 1992. Nelson died at his Tempe home on March 23, 2016 of complications of Alzheimer's disease.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Russell J. University of Minnesota faculty Leaders of the University of Colorado Boulder Presidents of Arizona State University 1929 births 2016 deaths Pacific Union College alumni UCLA Anderson School of Management alumni