|
As the president of Southern Methodist University since 1995, R. Gerald Turner is leading the University during a time of dramatic progress. Numerous new facilities, significant increases in measures of student quality, and a doubling of sponsored research have highlighted the past ten years. A new Strategic Plan and a new Master Plan are guiding the University toward the Centennial of its founding in 2011.
Beyond the campus, Gerald Turner serves on the boards of the United Way of Dallas, the Methodist Hospital Foundation, the Salvation Army of Dallas, and three publicly traded companies. He also serves on national higher education commissions.
Before joining SMU, President Turner served in senior administrative positions at the University of Mississippi, the University of Oklahoma, and Pepperdine University. A native Texan, he earned a B.S. degree from Abilene Christian University and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Texas at Austin. He and his wife, Gail, a native of Graham, Texas, have two daughters, Angela and Jessica, both of whom are married and live in Dallas. Angela is a professional opera singer and the mother of Luke; Jessica, an SMU alumna and the mother of Abby, is a professional actress.
Southern Methodist University is a private, comprehensive university of 11,000 students enrolled in seven degree-granting schools. SMU offers undergraduate and graduate programs in the humanities and sciences; business; engineering; education; and the performing, visual, and communication arts; as well as professional degree programs in law and theology. Founded in 1911 by what is now The United Methodist Church, SMU is nonsectarian in its teaching and committed to the values of academic freedom and open inquiry.
|
Richard Knight, Jr. 
R. Gerald Turner