Vice President Emeritus Clapacs returns to IU

Vice President Emeritus Terry Clapacs, one of the longest-serving vice presidents in IU history, will be discussing the history of IU’s limestone buildings at 7 p.m. May 17 at Bloomington City Hall, 401 N. Morton Street, according to a press release.

He will also discuss the major role he played in carving the university’s landscape. His lecture, the third annual Rosemary Miller Lecture, titled “Indiana University and Limestone: The Tie that Binds,” will be accompanied by a 15-minute presentation on limestone walls by Neil Rippingale. Rippingale is a master craftsman at Dry Stone Conservancy of Lexington, Ky. The Rosemary Miller Lecture Series honors the late Rosemary Miller, an artist and founding member of Bloomington’s Historic Preservation Commission, according to the release.
 
Clapacs retired from IU after serving as vice president, chief administrative officer, head of facilities planning and management and athletic director, according to the press release. During his tenure at IU, Clapacs oversaw the construction of multiple facilities at IU Bloomington, including Simon Hall, the Arboretum, the Student Recreational Sports Center, North End Zone Facility, Cook Hall, Chemistry Addition,
Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center, Hutton Honors College and the Atwater Parking Garage. He oversaw the development of over two-thirds of IU Bloomington’s campus and more than half the buildings on the university’s eight campuses.

At Clapacs’ retirement reception in 2009, IU President Michael McRobbie said, “It is not exaggeration to say that over the years Terry has become a living archive of the transformations that have taken place across the university,” according to the release.

While working on building projects and developing each position he held, Clapacs also managed to amass several individual accolades, including two Sagamore of the Wabash awards, the Thomas Hart Benton Memorial Medallion and the IU President’s Citation, according to the release.

At his retirement reception in 2009, Clapacs received the Indiana University Medal, one of the most prestigious awards given by IU. He is one of only 13 individuals to have received the Medal since its inception in 1982.

Clapacs recently co-authored a soon-to-be published book from IU Press, according to the release. It is titled, “Indiana University: America’s Legacy Campus.”

-Makenzie Holland