{"id":7377,"date":"2017-05-10T09:31:03","date_gmt":"2017-05-10T13:31:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hollins.edu\/magazine\/?p=7377"},"modified":"2017-05-10T09:52:47","modified_gmt":"2017-05-10T13:52:47","slug":"the-right-leader-at-the-right-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hollins.edu\/magazine\/the-right-leader-at-the-right-time\/","title":{"rendered":"The Right Leader at the Right Time"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Beth JoJack ’98<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Nancy

Having regular conservations with students, President Gray speaks with Emili McPhail \u201918.<\/p><\/div>\n

Here\u2019s a telling tidbit about Hollins University President Nancy Oliver Gray: she requested any articles written about her leaving the campus after twelve and a half years of distinguished leadership focus not on her but on how the university has evolved over the course of her tenure.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnything I\u2019ve accomplished has been accomplished because we did it as a team,\u201d she says. \u201cI really believe there\u2019s no \u2018I\u2019 in team.\u201d<\/p>\n

The list of achievements runs long, but two successes in particular will forever be associated with the school\u2019s eleventh president. One: under Gray\u2019s leadership, Hollins made significant gains in enrollment. The largest class of incoming new students in seventeen years started in August. Two: Gray will leave the university a picture of financial health. She led Hollins during the largest comprehensive fundraising campaign in school history and the largest ever undertaken by a women\u2019s college in the South, the Campaign for Women Who Are Going Places. It successfully concluded in 2010 with over $161 million raised, far exceeding the goal of $125 million \u2014 despite the fact that it occurred during the Great Recession.<\/p>\n

\u201cHollins has been extremely fortunate to have her in the presidency, particularly at this time in the institution\u2019s history, some parts of which have been very challenging,\u201d Tom Barron, who sits on the Hollins Board of Trustees, said of Gray. \u201cShe was the right leader at the right time.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Roanoke Times<\/em> said as much last summer in an editorial that largely credited Gray with Hollins\u2019 increases in enrollment and for eliminating the school\u2019s debt while significantly growing the endowment.<\/p>\n

\"Nancy

Nancy Oliver Gray inaugurated as Hollins\u2019 11th president on October 14, 2005.<\/p><\/div>\n

If not for her leadership, the writer surmised, Hollins could have easily gone the way of other women\u2019s colleges which began admitting men or closed for good. \u201cThanks to Gray,\u201d the editorial read, \u201cHollins stands as strong as the famed campus \u2018rock.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Walking the talk<\/h4>\n

On a recent Friday night, Gray opened the President\u2019s House for a senior cocktail party to kick off the class of 2017\u2019s fundraising campaign for the Hollins Fund.<\/p>\n

Creative writing major Laura Metter \u201917 eagerly chatted with Gray about attending the recent Association of Writers & Writing Programs Conference in Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to have to keep my eye on you, you\u2019re going to land somewhere good,\u201d Gray said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019ll be easy to keep an eye on me seeing how I stand out,\u201d Metter said, pointing to her hair, dyed a brilliant blue.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll loan you this jacket if you want,\u201d Gray joked in return, pointing to her stately jacket that happened to be the same hue.<\/p>\n

\"Nancy

President Gray with members of the class of 2009 at Reunion 2013.<\/p><\/div>\n

Students like Metter talk easily with Gray, whom they long ago lovingly nicknamed P. Gray. Conversations don\u2019t become stilted when she joins the group. No one straightens their posture. It\u2019s a comfort grown from familiarity. \u201cShe\u2019s pretty friendly with the student body,\u201d Metter said.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s so relatable,\u201d agreed Ashani Davidson \u201917.<\/p>\n

Gray frequently eats in Moody and turns out for swim meets. \u201cIf you invite her to an event, if she has time, she\u2019ll come,\u201d said Tegan Harcourt \u201917, president of the Student Government Association.
\nDuring her sophomore year, Harcourt remembers the moment she saw Gray join students holding a rally on campus in support of Black Lives Matter, the movement protesting violence and systemic racism.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe cleared her whole schedule,\u201d Harcourt said. \u201cShe was there all day talking to students. It was something about the outside world, not something specific to Hollins, but she still made sure she knew how people were feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gray sees getting to know students \u2014 really knowing them, beyond pleasantries and small talk \u2014 as part of her job.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat makes Hollins, Hollins is that we\u2019re a small community with really intimate faculty\/student relationships,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019ve got to walk the talk. I try to go to as many events as I can. I try to go to lunch. If I don\u2019t have time to sit down, I at least talk to people. I think it\u2019s really important.\u201d<\/p>\n

She makes those same efforts with faculty, staff, alumnae, parents, and members of the Roanoke community. \u201cI believe strongly you have to be in touch with all those constituencies in order to get an informed understanding of the institution as a whole,\u201d Gray said.<\/p>\n

When first arriving on campus in January of 2005, Gray took the time-consuming step of meeting with each member of the faculty one-on-one.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were able to speak frankly to me without worrying about what other people were going to think about what they said,\u201d Gray recalled. \u201cIf I had a whole department, some voices would have been louder than others. Some would have thought they had to play a role or would have held back saying something because they thought it would be unpopular with their colleagues. One-on-one people could be very frank. When you put all those conversations together, I had a really strong sense of Hollins.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gray\u2019s father was an engineer with Westinghouse Electric Corporation. As he climbed the corporate ladder, the family frequently had to move to different cities in Texas and California. Regularly facing new faces in new classrooms pushed Gray to be outgoing.<\/p>\n

\u201cI learned to make friends,\u201d she said. \u201cI learned to be flexible and adjust to new situations. More importantly, I learned there are great people everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hollins students, alumnae, and faculty without fail talk about Gray\u2019s congeniality and earnestness when asked about the president.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe most common refrain is \u2018I am going to miss her.\u2019 \u00a0Not \u2018her at the helm of Hollins\u2019 or \u2018all the talent she brought to fundraising\u2019 but just \u2018I am going to miss her.\u2019 Wyndham Robertson \u201958 wrote in an email. \u201cAnd that is because she has become a great friend to so many alums.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Rev. Dr. Cynthia L. Hale \u201975 called the opportunity to work closely with Gray \u201cone of the great joys\u201d of serving on Hollins\u2019 Board of Trustees.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe is a delightful person, greeting everyone she comes in contact with in a loving and caring way,\u201d Hale explained. \u201cWhen she talks with you, you always have her undivided attention, and she listens to you with her head and her heart.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking forward<\/h4>\n
\"\"

President Gray was named Hollins\u2019 11th president in July 2004 after serving as president of Converse College in South Carolina for five years.<\/p><\/div>\n

When headhunters initially contacted Gray about the Hollins presidency, she wasn\u2019t interested.<\/p>\n

She\u2019d been president at the all-female Converse College in Spartanburg, South Carolina, for five and a half years, and she was happy. \u201cSometimes I didn\u2019t return their calls,\u201d Gray admitted.<\/p>\n

Luckily, Linda Koch Lorimer \u201974 led the search committee for a new president and liked a challenge. \u201cIt became clear to us that Nancy Gray was extraordinary,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Lorimer called Gray directly with a request that she serve as a consultant for the search.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn about ten minutes that consultancy turned into an interview,\u201d Gray said. \u201cI was so impressed with Linda. I was so impressed with the other people I met on the search committee. It just felt like where I was supposed to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

All these years later, Lorimer remains enthusiastic about her choice.<\/p>\n

As retired vice president for Global and Strategic Initiatives at Yale University and former chair of the board of the Association of American Colleges and Universities, Lorimer has met a continuous stream of campus leaders over the course of her career. She ranks Gray as one of the top two she\u2019s known. \u201cI think it\u2019s a combination of being remarkably smart and having acute interpersonal talents that make her able to pull from individuals their best selves.\u201d Lorimer said.<\/p>\n

In addition to bolstering Hollins\u2019 enrollment and finances, Gray has collaborated with faculty to create a number of academic programs. The university now offers majors in environmental studies and environmental science; a certificate program in leadership studies; an extensive seminar program for first-year students; Master of Fine Arts degrees in playwriting and children\u2019s book writing and illustrating; and the Honors Seminar Program.<\/p>\n

Gray also carefully oversaw the renovation and care of historic buildings and gardens on the Hollins campus. \u201cI\u2019ve learned a lot about steam pipes,\u201d Gray joked. \u201cThere\u2019s a real responsibility with a campus as old as this one to preserve the historic integrity of the campus, to maintain its beauty, and to make it functional in the 21st<\/sup> century.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Nancy

Reunion 2007<\/p><\/div>\n

Gray gave careful consideration to how and when to step down from her post. She saw the end of the 2016-17 school year as a natural time to conclude. Hollins\u2019 strategic plan goes through 2018. A quiet fundraising campaign ends in June. It\u2019s the 175th<\/sup> anniversary.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt seemed like the right time to pass the baton to a new leader at Hollins,\u201d Gray said.<\/p>\n

While Gray is leaving, she isn\u2019t going far. With husband David Maxson, Gray has purchased a home in South Roanoke. \u201cWe really have fallen in love with this area,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Retiring doesn\u2019t mean Gray will be sitting at her kitchen table doing crosswords. \u201cI\u2019m going to look for ways to give back to higher education and to Roanoke. I\u2019m specifically looking at some consulting opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even with months to adjust to the idea of leaving Hollins, the goodbyes are emotional. The night of the senior legacy cocktail party, Gray took to the center of the room.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m in the same boat you\u2019re in, excited and scared, a little anxious and a little hopeful,\u201d she told the class of 2017, who\u2019ve invited her to be an honorary member since she\u2019s \u201cgraduating\u201d with them. \u201cSad about missing people. Looking forward to doing things I don\u2019t have time to do now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though she remained as poised as ever, Gray\u2019s voice cracked slightly when she told the women they\u2019ll all need to reach out to one another while navigating the next stage of their lives.<\/p>\n

\u201cUltimately, we\u2019re all Hollins women,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019re going to be just fine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beth JoJack is a Roanoke writer who contributes frequently to <\/strong><\/em>Hollins<\/strong> magazine.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"divider\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

David Maxson<\/h4>\n
\"David

David Maxson with one of the couple\u2019s cats, Littlefoot.<\/p><\/div>\n

Nancy Gray\u2019s husband also worked hard for Hollins during the couple\u2019s twelve and a half years on campus.<\/p>\n

\u201cHollins is especially grateful to David Maxson for his wide-ranging contributions to Hollins over the years,\u201d said Kerry Edmonds, vice president for finance and administration.<\/p>\n

In addition to helping President Gray host events, Maxson, an avid photographer, captured many beautiful images of the campus, university events, and Tinker Creek that were used in marketing materials and even on a campus holiday card. Maxson made his biggest mark, however, as a master gardener.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe has shared his expertise as master gardener working countless hours to expertly maintain the grounds at the president\u2019s house and design and develop beautiful flowering gardens that will enhance the overall landscape for years to come,\u201d Edmonds said.<\/p>\n

\"divider\"
\n\"Tinker
\nNot every day of Gray\u2019s Hollins career has been smooth sailing. For her first Tinker Day, Gray and her husband wore wet suits. Tinker Day was held in the spring that year because it had been rained out the previous October.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t know what I was doing,\u201d Gray recalled. \u201cThey said wear a costume, they said wear something crazy. \u2018OK,\u201d we decided, \u201cwe\u2019ll wear wetsuits.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gray envisioned the Tinker Day hike as more of a stroll up a grassy knoll. \u201cThese people have been doing this for years,\u201d she told herself. \u201cIt can\u2019t be that hard.\u201d<\/p>\n

The weather that day was particularly hot, much too warm for neoprene. \u201cWe thought we were going to faint,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

By the next fall, Gray had her Tinker Day game down, though. Her costume is a collection of items given to her over the years by alumnae and students. The Dr. Seuss hat she wore during her first reunion was given to her by the class of 1945. After the class of 2006 read in the archives that the president used to always wear a sweater on Tinker Day, they found Gray a green and gold cardigan which they adorned with a felt H.<\/p>\n

Tegan Harcourt \u201917 rated Gray\u2019s final Tinker Day performance last fall with an A+. \u201cHer feather boa was one of the highlights of my year,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"divider\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Musings on Hollins University President Nancy Oliver Gray<\/h4>\n

Quotes and photos about President Gray ><\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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