Jane Margaret “Maggie” O’Brien, president of St. Mary’s College of Maryland, announced her resignation on Jan. 7. O’Brien indicated that she would stay on until the college was successful finding her replacement.
O’Brien’s tenure at the liberal arts college saw the school go from relative obscurity to national prominence as one of the 50 best value public colleges, according to the Princeton Review.
The college will have to work quickly to find a replacement for O’Brien whose impact on the school will be hard to duplicate. The enigmatic leader stated that she would stay no later then June 30, 2010. However, once her duties as president are concluded, O’Brien will continue to interact with the SMCM’s Centre for Medieval and Renaissance Studies in Oxford, England.
“St. Mary’s College has flourished under President O’Brien’s leadership as Maryland’s premier honors College. She has contributed greatly to our advancement in scholarship, research, creative thinking and community engagement. … Her appreciation and commitment to world issues and cultures was a catalyst to the College’s international development. Her enthusiastic support of the arts, music and athletics gave us the River Concert Series, the River Gazette, and a community commitment that is rare for a small, 2,000-student campus,” said James P. Muldoon, chair of the SMCM Board of Trustees.
O’Brien was responsible for the transformation of SMCM to that of a nationally recognized institution of higher learning. During her 13 years, SMCM developed new core and honors curriculum and led the effort to raise millions of dollars for capital improvements and increased scholarship offerings. Her efforts included increasing the number of professors and significant lecturers along with many arts and other community programs.
She also headed up the effort to create SMCM’s The Center for the Study of Democracy; the center offers contemporary and historical lectures and increased student scholarships.
O’Brien said that she draws the most pride from students’ accomplishments and from those of the faculty and her team of colleagues. “Over the years, I’ve taken great personal satisfaction from working with our amazingly smart, creative, and caring student body. Our students have an intense sense of community, which is fostered by our faculty. Their concern for each other, the larger community, the environment and, indeed, the world has been a source of great pride and inspiration to me,” said O’Brien.
The next step in search for O’Brien’s replacement lies with SMCM’s Board of Trustees who have to develop a search protocol. It is certain that O’Brien will be missed by many in the Southern Maryland community.