Bethel University’s next president is a 1984 alum who had a long career as a Medtronic executive before recently helping another Christian college gets its finances in order.
Ross Allen, 59, has been chief financial officer at Azusa Pacific University in California since 2018 after 25 years with the Twin Cities medical device company.
Bethel announced Thursday that Allen would take over for the retiring Jay Barnes this summer.
A profile for the vacancy made clear that Bethel needed someone who could lead it to a better financial position. The document cited a need to grow the endowment, make school more affordable for students and change a “culture where morale and turnover issues have arisen due to ongoing budget cuts and financial concerns.”
Bethel said in December it planned to eliminate 30 faculty and 30 staff positions in order to close an $11 million deficit over three years.
At 5,325 last year, total enrollment at the Arden Hills college was down 18 percent from its 2012-13 peak.
Likewise, Azusa Pacific — like Bethel, a private, evangelical Christian university — cut planned spending in 2018-19 by $20 million, according to the school’s student newspaper.
“The results Ross achieved in his previous role align with our recent work to position Bethel for a bright future,” presidential search committee chairman Jim Green said in a prepared statement. “We are incredibly excited to see how his ability to build relationships with faculty and staff — along with his experience in healthcare — will drive Bethel’s mission forward.”
Allen had been on Azusa Pacific’s board of directors before becoming its chief financial officer, and he played a key role in charting a new vision for the school.
“It was great to see God calling me into something that was not on my radar, was not where I thought God was going to lead me,” he said in a video posted along with Thursday’s announcement. “What a preparation for this role.”