Rocky Mount, N.C.— After seven years of dedicated service at the helm of North Carolina Wesleyan College, Dr. Ian D. C. Newbould has announced that he will step down as President of North Carolina Wesleyan College on June 30 to accept the position of President of Richmond, The American International University in London. Dr. Newbould will be the fifth President in the history of that college.

Richmond is a unique international and intercultural university with approximately 1,100 students from 100 different countries. It has campuses in Richmond upon Thames and Kensington in London, and in Florence and Rome in Italy. It is recognized as one of the leading U.S. institutions of higher education abroad, with business and international relations among its areas of expertise.

“This will be a fabulous opportunity for Carla and me, and we were excited to accept it,” Dr. Newbould said. “I wish to thank the Board of Trustees for the opportunity to serve these past seven years. We leave the College and Rocky Mount with both sadness and excitement. We have wonderful friends in the community, and will remember Rocky Mount with great fondness.”

A native of Canada, Dr. Newbould came to Wesleyan from Mount Allison University in New Brunswick, Canada, with his wife, Carla Vandergrift Newbould, to begin the College’s 2001 fall semester. Dr. Newbould served Mount Allison as President and Vice-Chancellor for 10 years. He oversaw major academic and fiscal reforms that were instrumental in Mount Allison’s recognition as Canada’s leading undergraduate university. His numerous activities external to the University included a two-year term as chair of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada; he was co-chair of the Government of New Brunswick Health Services Review Committee; and he served as a Deputy Board member of the International Association of Universities—a UNESCO-based organization in Paris.

Dr. Newbould is a specialist in nineteenth century British history and has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society of Great Britain. He has written and published extensively on British history, including the book Whiggery and Reform 1830-1841: The Politics of Government. He received his B.A. from the University of Western Ontario, his M.A. from the University of Guelph, in Canada, and his Ph.D. from the University of Manchester, in England.

Arriving at North Carolina Wesleyan, Dr. Newbould continued to demonstrate strong leadership as he guided the College enthusiastically toward a celebration of its 50th anniversary (1956-2006) and beyond.

 
Thomas A. Betts, Jr., a Wesleyan trustee and chairman of the Board of Trustees when Dr. Newbould was hired, said, “I had the good fortune to serve on the committee that recruited Ian and Carla Newbould to North Carolina Wesleyan College. It was the best decision the College ever made. They took to the town and the town took to them immediately; they were an instant hit, and they were well received by all.

“Mrs. Newbould immediately became involved with campus life and City life. She began by having students in the President’s home often, and with great enthusiasm, and with warmth. Dr. Newbould briskly rolled up his sleeves and tackled the many issues facing the College back then.

“Since his arrival, the College has accomplished the following: He has increased the number and quality of students to record levels; he has increased giving to record levels and increased the number of faculty by 50 percent; he expanded and improved the athletic program to record levels, including establishing the football program; he steered us through accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools; and he is responsible for the upcoming construction of the new library addition.

“Unfortunately, this is a very sad day for Wesleyan. Fortunately, Dr. Newbould has been selected as President of a very fine university, and his selection validated our decision in hiring him. The Newboulds gave their all to us, and I shall be eternally grateful to them for their service, and their dedication to this campus. You only meet people like this once in awhile, and we sure were lucky to have had them for awhile.”

During the next several months, Dr. Newbould will be completing a new five-year strategic plan for Wesleyan. He also looks forward to taking part in the groundbreaking for a 12,000-foot addition to the College’s Elizabeth Braswell Pearsall Library that will nearly double its size and make the library a focal point of the campus.

In the meantime, Wesleyan’s Board of Trustees is committed to continuing and expanding upon the positive momentum experienced under Dr. Newbould’s presidency and will meet very soon to plan for the transition to new leadership.