GSE Welcomes Dr. Gregory Blimling
Dr. Gregory Blimling has accepted a three-year appointment as a professor at the GSE following 36 years as a student affairs administrator, 22 years of which as a university vice president or vice chancellor. In 2004, Dr. Blimling was recruited to Rutgers University to serve as the Vice President for Student Affairs from Appalachian State University in North Carolina where he was Vice Chancellor for Student Development and Professor of Education. After joining Rutgers, he accepted an offer to affiliate with the GSE as professor in the departments of Educational Psychology and Educational Theory, Policy, and Administration. During his eight years as Vice President for Student Affairs at Rutgers, Dr. Blimling created a new division of student affairs following the reorganization of undergraduate education and constructed many new student facilities, including four new residence halls, a new counseling center, a new student dining hall, and a significantly expanded student center on the Livingston campus. He also developed more than a dozen new student services, increased student involvement in campus activities, and significantly increased student satisfaction with student affairs programs and services. He worked collaboratively with Dean DeLisi to create the new master’s degree program in College Student Affairs at the GSE and provided financial support through student affairs internships for most of the graduate students in that program.
Dr. Blimling is nationally recognized as expert in the field of college student affairs. He is the author or co-author of 6 books and an extensive number of journal articles, monographs, papers and other scholarly contributions in the fields of higher education and college student affairs. For 9 years, Dr. Blimling served as the Editor of the Journal of College Student Development, the nation’s leading scholarly journal in the field of college student affairs and for 6 years, he served as a Senior Scholar of the American College Student Personnel Association (ACPA). He co-chair of the national study group that authored the Principles of Good Practice for Student Affairs and in 2005-2006, Dr. Blimling was elected and served as the national President of the American College Personnel Association (ACPA). His book on educating resident assistants for working with college students in residence halls has been in continuous publication for over 30 years and is the most widely used text in this area of study.
Dr. Blimling has received many national awards for his scholarship and administration in student affairs. Among these awards are the Outstanding Contribution to Literature and Research Award from the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), the Contribution to Knowledge Award from ACPA, the national Dissertation of the Year Award in student affairs and higher education from NASPA, the North Carolina Distinguished Scholar Award for student affairs, and the Southern Association of College Student Affairs Melvene Hardee Award for Outstanding Achievement in Student Personnel Work. Ohio State University, Indiana University, Bowling Green State University, and Western Illinois University also have honored him with awards for his writing, service, and administration in student affairs. In May of 2012, the faculty of GSE honored Dr. Blimling for his scholarly contributions in the field of student affairs and higher education by awarding him the Distinguished Leader in Education (Academia) Award.
Dr. Blimling is working on a new book to be published in the coming year about student learning in college residence halls.
In this new chapter of his professional career, Dr. Blimling said that he is most excited about teaching again. Dr. Blimling said that teaching and writing fulltime as a faculty member is something he has planned to do for many years and he is excited about having the opportunity to do that at the GSE. “What I really look forward to is talking with the next generation of college student affairs educators and sharing with them what I’ve learned through my experiences and my research. I also hope that the next several years will provide me with the time to pursue my scholarship and share some of what I have learned about student affairs administration during more than three decades of working with college students as a student affairs professional.”
About the Student Affairs Program
The College Student Affairs program is designed to prepare students for a career in various facets of student affairs such as housing and residence life, student activities, student volunteering, and admissions. The program also features practicum and internship study focusing on particular areas of interest, which allow students to further develop the essential knowledge and skills for a career in student affairs.