A Word from Dean Gallo

It is fitting in a newsletter on leadership that I take a moment to describe a significant change in leadership that affects Geneva College. By now, you may have heard the news that Dr. Calvin Troup has been called by God and confirmed by the Board of Trustees to serve as the next President of Geneva College. This is certainly a momentous and historic occasion in the life of our college.

When this process began with the announcement of Ken Smith's resignation last spring, I immediately began praying that God would call Dr. Troup to this role. To me, there is no one more eminently qualified to be President than Dr. Troup. Not only has he been a member of the Geneva College Board of Trustees for some time and understands the issues that Geneva faces, he is a scholar and statesman. He has written several books, published many scholarly articles in academic journals, and has been a teacher and chair of a prestigious doctoral program at Duquesne University.

Not only does Dr. Troup have a love and affinity for higher education, he loves Geneva College as well. And while he undoubtedly has a passion for the liberal arts and a traditional undergraduate education, he has served as chair of a graduate department at Duquesne University and has taught online! While on the Board of Trustees, Dr. Troup has always been a big supporter of our work in the Department of Professional & Leadership Studies.

By his nature as President, no one will be able to shape the culture, vision and tone of the campus more than President Troup. Our issues are great—but there is no one I trust more to lead Geneva through these turbulent times than Dr. Calvin Troup. I am so happy, excited and optimistic about Geneva's future!

John Gallo
Dean of Graduate, Adult and Online Programs

Chief of Police for Penn Township, John Otto

John Otto had an education that aligned with his straightforward career. As a police officer, he had a bachelor's degree in criminal justice and had just graduated from the FBI National Academy and was about to begin as Chief of Police for the Penn Township Police Department. He began looking for a master's degree to supplement his degree and work experience, but in a different field. Of all of the options available, he was drawn to the Master of Organizational Leadership at Geneva College after a friend, who also worked in law enforcement, suggested it.

But the attraction to this program was both professional and personal. "I decided to enroll because development was never a part of our police department, and I was well aware that I was lacking leadership skills." John admits that the knowledge he learned from the experienced MSOL faculty has been used daily in a variety of settings. "Properly diagnosing problems, developing strategy to solve those problems and motivating the action necessary are necessary beyond just the workplace."

Specifically, certain topics of leadership have been proved to be profoundly helpful. "Transactional versus transformational leadership was something that was truly eye-opening, along with the simple revelation that all workplaces should be about the people employed there. We often think about employees being the necessary evil; however, in reality they're the link that can take organizations from mediocre to exceptional. It's just a matter of motivation and buy-in." 

He also found the courses on history of leadership, professional development, motivation, organizational change and strategy to be helpful because they "deal with the commonalities in all workplaces, such as people, change, motivation and strategy."

Chief of Police John Otto now has the personal development as a leader that he was seeking. He credits MSOL for helping him to acquire the skill set to "understand and implement the leadership process." His advice for people considering this program is simple: do it. "Everyone has a story of poor leadership, and everyone has the desire to not repeat it."