Sioux City, IA – On Thursday, April 7, Dr. Hamid Shirvani was announced as the tenth president of Briar Cliff University during a welcoming ceremony in the St. Francis Center on campus.
Officially starting July 1, he will replace current president Bev Wharton, who will retire after serving BCU for fifteen years. Her work has set a solid foundation for Briar Cliff, one that will allow Dr. Shirvani to lead the university toward continued growth. We can't wait to see what he brings to our campus!
Here are 9 reasons we can't wait to welcome Dr. Hamid Shirvani:
1. He has Catholic roots.
Dr. Shirvani is a practicing Roman Catholic, and Briar Cliff University's values are rooted in the Catholic-Franciscan tradition. Our BCU family members come from diverse faith backgrounds, but our mission is universal: caring and openness to all. We think that he will lead an excellent example.
2. His international background represents us well.
Dr. Shirvani was born in Tehran, Iran, raised in London, England, and has attended graduate schools in the United States. BCU students come from all corners of the globe: Rwanda, South Korea, the United Kingdom, in all representing 40 states and 18 countries. One of the most wonderful things about our university is that our diverse experiences help us learn more about each other and the world around us, so it's exciting to see our president embody this as well.
3. He has his own Wikipedia page.
I have this theory that you haven't really made it in life until you have your own Wikipedia page. Tom Hanks has one, Mother Teresa has one and Dr. Shirvani has one. Enough said.
4. You could say he's qualified for the job.
Dr. Shirvani has 37 years of experience in higher education. He has earned degrees from Harvard and Princeton, among other universities. He has twice received President of the Year awards, making up only a portion of an impressive list of awards and recognitions. These certainly show that he has excellent capabilities, and he has made good use of them, making it all the more likely that he will make use of them here.
5. He has fundraising experience.
Compared to universities like us and surrounding us, Briar Cliff University is much newer. While others have had a century or more to build their financial resources, Briar Cliff is still developing. As it continues to do so, generous donations from sponsors ensure that students here are given the necessary resources for a quality education. Dr. Shirvani has raised over $700 million for the institutions he has served, including $1 million for research grant funding. We can say with confidence that we believe he will be a tremendous help.
6. It's clear that he is going to enter the position with students in mind.
To quote him directly,"It's important for students to get to know me as a teacher, not as an administrator." Bev has done a wonderful job of connecting with students and addressing their concerns during her time here, and it is exciting that our new president is concerned with doing much of the same. It seems that Dr. Shirvani recognizes that as students, our areas of study and interest vary: arts, sciences, athletics, etc.; we think he will do a fine job of addressing each of these when setting goals and making decisions.
7. He will also serve as an Art Faculty member.
Okay, so not only will Dr. Shirvani be fulfilling his presidential duties, he will also teach an architecture class as an Art Faculty member. This will be an amazing opportunity for students, because he literally wrote the book on architecture. Several of them, actually.
8. His expertise in architecture will also help Briar Cliff to make wiser use of its limited campus space.
Since we're on a cliff, we have limited options when it comes to expansions. We could use someone like Dr. Shirvani to point us in the right direction!
9. His nickname is "Ham."
And he prefers that you use it. Again, enough said.
Welcome, Ham! We love what you're going to bring to our campus, and we can't wait to get to know you.
