Ronald Berkman will participate in his final commencement as president of Cleveland State University this weekend.
Berkman will step down this summer after nine years leading the urban institution.
During his tenure, Berkman implemented policies that he said were meant to help first generation and minority students succeed, like allowing students to enroll in classes for multiple semesters at a time to keep them on track to graduate.
“Because students who have an experience of failure, particularly first generation students, minority students, I think leaves a negative residual that sticks for a long time,” he said.
Those changes led to what he called the greatest accomplishment at Cleveland State—increasing the graduation rate.
The six-year graduation rate increased from 26 percent in 2008, the year before Berkman took over as president, to 45 percent in 2018.
As he reflected on his time at the university, Berkman noted the role of higher education institutions is changing in our society.
With record low unemployment rates, finding a job after completing an advanced degree is becoming more competitive, he said, and that is forcing colleges and universities to shift their focus.
“Our task really is to find ways in which we can create bridges between what they are learning inside the classroom and how that learning applies [to their careers],” he said.
Harlan Sands, chief financial officer of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business, will take over as CSU’s president on June 1.
Editor's Note: An early verison of this story indicated Sands would take over as president of CSU on July 1. The story has been updated to show that Sands will begin on June 1.
