Eric R. Gilbertson is the third and current President of Saginaw Valley State University

Saginaw Valley State University

Saginaw Valley State University, commonly known as SVSU, is a state university in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located in the middle of Michigan's lower peninsula in the Saginaw Valley region. The university is located in Kochville Township, Saginaw County...

, in the U.S. state of Michigan

Michigan

Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

. He succeeded Dr. Jack McBride Ryder as President in 1989. Eric R. Gilbertson became the third president of SVSU in August 1989. Since his arrival, approximately $196 million in construction has been completed on the SVSU campus, with enrollments increasing from 5,915 in fall semester 1989 to 10,498 in fall semester 2009.

President Gilbertson earned a Juris Doctor

Juris Doctor

Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...

 degree (with honors) from Cleveland State University

Cleveland State University

Cleveland State University is a public university located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. It was established in 1964 when the state of Ohio assumed control of Fenn College, and it absorbed the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law in 1969...

. He holds a masters of arts in economics from Ohio University and a bachelor of science degree from Bluffton College (Ohio). Prior to his arrival at SVSU, Dr. Gilbertson served as president of Johnson State College

Johnson State College

Johnson State College is a small public liberal arts college, founded in 1828 by John Chesamore at Johnson in the U.S. state of Vermont. Johnson's president is Barbara E. Murphy and its board chair is Gary M. Moore.- History and governance :...

 (Vermont), was legal counsel to the Ohio Board of Regents

Ohio Board of Regents

The Ohio Board of Regents is the coordinating board for higher education in Ohio. The board was created in 1963 by the Ohio General Assembly to: provide higher education policy advice to the Governor of Ohio and the Ohio General Assembly; develop a strategy involving Ohio's public and independent...

, and was executive assistant to the president of Ohio State University

Ohio State University

The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...

.

Dr. Gilbertson has traveled and lectured extensively in Asia. In 1993 he received an Honorary Doctor of Literature Degree from the University of Mysore

University of Mysore

The University of Mysore , is a public university in India. The University founded during the reign of Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV, the Maharaja of Mysore, and was conceptualized on the basis of a report on educational progress in the United States and Australia, submitted by Messrs Thomas Denham and...

, Karnataka, India. He is also involved in many professional and civic organizations.

While at SVSU, he was instrumental in the creation of the Donna J. Roberts Fellowship, the premier fellowship at the university. The Donna J. Roberts fellowship is awarded to students who exhibit leadership qualities and who have shown a past and future commitment to public service.