V. Lane Rawlins

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Veldon Lane Rawlins is the former President of Washington State University (WSU) and of the University of Memphis.

1 Early Life and Education
2 Academic Career
3 Personal
4 External Links

[edit] Early Life and Education

Born on November 30, 1937 in southeastern Idaho, United States, he graduated from Brigham Young University in 1963 with a bachelor's degree in economics. In 1969, Rawlins obtained his doctoral degree in economics from the University of California, Berkeley.

[edit] Academic Career

In 1968, Dr. Rawlins became part of the faculty of the Department of Economics at WSU. He served as the chair of the department from 1977 to 1981 and was WSU's vice provost from 1982-1986. He served as the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs of the University of Alabama for five years before assuming the presidency of the University of Memphis.

In June 2000, Rawlins returned to Washington State where he served as president until May 21, 2007. Rawlins created some controversy in the WSU community in 2002 when he tried to phase out the popular nickname "Wazzu" from usage. The change proved a firestorm of protest from students and alumni and he relented. He is remembered for a strategic plan developed by faculty that led to increases in research funding and to growth in the numbers of talented students choosing WSU.

Rawlins is a labor economist by training and much of his research work focused on the effects of education on earnings in people's lives. His books include "Public Service Employment: The Experience of a Decade," co-authored with Robert F. Cook and Charles F. Adams, published in 1985.

In 2006, Rawlins announced his retirement as president of WSU. He was succeeded by former University of Missouri System President Elson S. Floyd in late May 2007. Floyd is WSU's first African-American president.

Rawlins then returned to the School of Economic Sciences faculty. He was named interim director of William Ruckelshaus Center, a regional problem-solving program of Washington State University and the University of Washington.

[edit] Personal

He and his wife Mary Jo Rawlins have three children and 11 grandchildren including a current undergraduate at Washington State. Rawlins is an avid fan of WSU Cougar Athletics and the Cougar Marching Band, but he also enjoys fly-fishing, golf, history, and literature.