Asbury Receives Award For Administrative Excellence

March 20, 2003
University Park, Pa. – William W. Asbury, vice president for student affairs, has been honored by Penn State with the Award for Administrative Excellence. The award, established in 1970, is given annually to a University faculty or staff member whose performance methods and achievements exemplify the highest standards of administrative excellence.

Asbury is responsible for a vast network of support services, activities and programs serving more than 83,000 Penn State students at 24 locations. He oversees more than 400 full-time employees in areas including program assessment, campus life, student programs and student counseling and health services.

He has been a major driving force behind two of the University's most successful acclaimed programs in recent years: LateNight Penn State, which provides alternative, alcohol-free activities and events on campus during weekends; and the Newspaper Readership Program, an initiative providing students on 20 Penn State campuses daily access to The New York Times, USA Today, and a local newspaper in what has become a model program at colleges and universities nationwide. Among his many career accolades, his distinguished involvement with the Golden Key International Honor Society as Penn State's chapter advisor recently earned him the society's 2002 International Advisor of the Year Award.

A former professional football player with the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers, Asbury entered higher education administration as human resources director at his alma mater, Kent State University, in 1974. He came to Penn State two years later as the University's affirmative action officer.

In 1983, Asbury was elevated to the position of executive assistant to the president, and assumed his current role as vice president for student affairs in 1987.  He has announced his intention to retire from the University effective June 30, 2003, capping 27 years of service to Penn State.

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Contact: 
Tysen Kendig, Department of Public Information, (814) 865-7517; tysen@psu.edu