When Gary Miller took over as University of Akron president in August of 2019, he was taking over a job that might as well have come with a “Hello, My Name is …” sticker and a Hazmat suit.
He was UA’s fourth president in about five years, and he was not only tasked with stabilizing the finances and enrollment of the struggling university — he was about to do it while navigating a global pandemic that accelerated the already-challenging trends in higher education.
Five years later, UA is a better place — and Miller is ready to hand over the reins.