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Kevin Quinn Named 8th President of Aquinas College

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From Aquinas College, April 11, 2017
by Carl Apple, carl.apple@aquinas.edu, 616-485-3683

The Aquinas College Board of Trustees has announced that Dr. Kevin Quinn has been appointed the 8th president of Aquinas College.
President-elect Quinn is currently the dean of the Schneider School of Business and Economics at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin. His appointment at Aquinas will begin July 1, 2017. An inauguration ceremony will take place this fall at a date to be announced later.

Media are invited to a press conference to announce President-elect Quinn to campus in the Wege Ballroom at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, April 12. A livestream link to view the press conference can be found at: http://aquinas.edu/president

"On behalf of the Board of Trustees, I am proud to present Dr. Quinn as the new president of Aquinas College," said Dr. Donald Burns, chairman of the Board of Trustees. "Dr. Quinn not only has proven experience in higher education leadership, but is a man of strong Catholic faith and has shown throughout the selection process that he is committed to the values of Aquinas."
Quinn has served at St. Norbert College since 1994, most recently as the dean of the Schneider School of Business, which he helped found in 2014. Prior to that, he served as the college's associate academic dean, as associate dean of the Social Sciences, and coordinator for the Economics discipline. Quinn led the successful revitalization of St. Norbert College's general education curriculum and served as the founding director of the Sport and Society Conference series coproduced with the Green Bay Packers.

"One of the many things that drew me to Aquinas was the strong connection to the Dominican pillars, especially its sense of community," said President-elect Quinn.  "It is the honor of a lifetime to become a part of the distinguished history of Aquinas College, and of the long selfless service of the Dominican Sisters of Grand Rapids.  I look forward to building upon the great work of President Olivarez in enhancing the school's academic distinction, student experience and affordability."   

A native of the Chicago area, Quinn earned a B.S. in 1983 in Physics and Mathematics from Loyola University in Chicago, and an M.B.A. in Marketing and Economics from the University of Illinois-Chicago (UIC) in 1989. Prior to earning his Ph.D. in energy and environmental economics from UIC, he worked in the private sector in aerospace and medical imaging industries.

Quinn has taught at Loyola and UIC; his primary research focus has recently been in the field of sports economics. One of his books, Sports and Their Fans, examines the history, economics and culture of the relationship between spectator and sport.
During the presidential search process, Quinn visited campus twice, most recently in March as one of four presidential finalist candidates. During that time, he had public and private meetings with alumni, staff, faculty, college leadership and members of the Dominican Sisters ~ Grand Rapids.
Last August, Aquinas' current president, Dr. Juan Olivarez, announced his intention to retire at the end of June. In the next year, President Olivarez will continue to work with the Aquinas Foundation on their work on the college's $58 million comprehensive campaign.

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