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Dr. Ken Smith resigns; William J. Edgar, Ph.D. as interim president

The current president of Geneva College resigns after 11 years of service.

  —Cheryl Johnston | Features, Agency Features, College | April 15, 2015 | Read time: one minute



BEAVER FALLS, PA (04/14/2015)– Geneva College’s Board of Trustees recently appointed William J. Edgar, Ph.D., as interim president beginning July I, 2015.

Edgar’s appointment follows the recent resignation of Dr. Ken Smith. After serving as Geneva’s president for 11 years, Smith is moving on to University of Mary Hardin-Baylor in Belton, Texas, where he has been appointed Dean of the McLane College of Business. He said, “When I was recruited by the Board of Trustees, I committed to serving for eight years; it has now been 11, several years longer than the average for college presidents. In God’s providence, in recent months I became aware of an opportunity for which I seemed particularly well suited and have decided to move in that direction.”

Geneva’s Board of Trustees Chair Joye Huston noted that Dr. Smith did “good and valuable work for the college over the last decade.”

Edgar is the immediate past chair of Geneva’s Board of Trustees and currently chairs its Board of Corporators. Prior to his board work for Geneva, he chaired the Board of Trustees of the Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary. He also has extensive family connections with Geneva: his son Daniel graduated from Geneva two years ago, Dr. Edgar’s parents were both graduated from Geneva, and his grandparents Dr. and Mrs. John Coleman were Bible professors at Geneva for many years.

Edgar recently retired as pastor from the Broomall Reformed Presbyterian Church near Philadelphia where, aided by his wife Gretchen, he served for 34 years. For 30 of those years, he also taught mathematics at East High School in West Chester, Pennsylvania.

Geneva’s Board of Trustees will conduct a search for Geneva’s next President during Dr. Edgar’s interim presidency.