Herbert to take over Bepko's interim role

On Aug. 1, IU will transition from Interim President Gerald Bepko to newly selected president Adam W. Herbert. This transition will allow Bepko to retire from the administration and teach at the IU-Purdue University at Indianapolis School of Law.\nPrior to Sue Talbot's retirement from the University, she worked with Bepko for many years.\n"Bepko maintained the vision we were striving for," she said. "He was very good in helping maintain the leadership, because he knew the University internally and externally," said Talbot, a trustee and member of the presidential search committee.\nBepko's role as interim president followed three decades of academic service. For IUPUI, he has worked as a faculty member, dean of the law school and chancellor. As interim IU president, part of his commitment was to work with the Indiana General Assembly to ask for funds for higher education. Talbot said Bepko was a big help in getting the funds from the General Assembly. \nNot only was Bepko helpful working with the state, he strengthened partnerships with private sectors, said IU spokesman Bill Stephan. He also advanced the ties between IU and Purdue University, as well as ties between IU and various community colleges.\n"He has managed the University quite well," Stephan said. "He's a very exclusive leader. He builds consensus and works well with diverse groups."\nTalbot said she is also looking forward to working with Herbert in the future. \n"(The trustees) will be very supportive of Herbert," she said. "We hired him and pledged to give him our full support. We have every reason to expect him to be successful."\nStephan said Herbert satisfied the qualities the University was looking for in a new president. \n"He is a strong leader, a good communicator, has integrity and maintains the University's excellence," he said. He also said he thinks Herbert will bring a lot of energy and enthusiasm as president. \n"He's a man of integrity and honesty and receives the respect of the University and the public," Stephan said. \nStephan said during the transition period, Herbert will continue to be in communication with Bepko by personal meetings, e-mails and phone conversations. Stephan said he feels Herbert will devote the transition period to reading and listening in order to become well-versed with IU's practices.\nHe said, as he gets settled in, he'll have time to meet alumni and students, adding that Bepko will be available to meet with Herbert in order to make this transition as smooth as possible. \n"I sense that there is already a strong relationship between the two," Stephan said.