EDITOR’S NOTE: This story is featured in the Spring 2025 edition of The Tartan magazine. Read more from The Tartan at alma.edu/tartan.
Jeff Abernathy in China
After 14 years, Jeff Abernathy was named president emeritus of Alma College in November. His impact on Alma College will endure for many, many years to come.
The cover story of the Fall 2020 edition of The Tartan magazine highlighted Jeff Abernathy on his 10-year anniversary as Alma College President. In it, Abernathy is quoted as saying: “It’s not in our DNA to brag about ourselves, but we need to be willing to tell the great story of Alma College. I think we’ve made some strides in that department, but we still have a ways to go.”
On the occasion of Abernathy’s departure as college president, let’s brag about a tenure that has been utterly transformative in the nearly-140-year history of Alma College.
Necessary change
To be clear, Abernathy’s time as president has not always been easy. He came into the role in 2010, on the heels of the Great Recession, a period of great economic challenges across the globe that threatened many small colleges like Alma. There was at the time, and remains to this day, an ongoing national dialogue about the value of traditional higher education institutions in a changing marketplace.
At the time, Alma College had not added a new major in 17 years, and had not added a new sport in 25 years. Abernathy responded by working with faculty to create new, pre-professional programs like nursing, engineering and new media studies, which over time have integrated seamlessly into the liberal arts culture of Alma.
He also facilitated the introduction of new sports that have proven very popular among incoming students, including eSports, dance and competitive cheer. Some 70 percent of first-year students at Alma College now play a sport.
Jeff Abernathy was well-known on campus for his love of bicycle riding
Room to grow
Abernathy’s legacy extends beyond the classroom and the field of play — the physical structures that make up Alma College look dramatically different than they did in 2010.
Abernathy led the successful “Our Time is Now” philanthropic campaign that raised more than $125 million for Alma College. It enabled the college to renovate key buildings, including student housing, the Hamilton Commons dining hall, the Hogan Center for athletics and the Greg Hatcher Learning Commons.
The Wright Leppien Opera House in downtown Alma was renovated as a shared space for campus and community events, and student apartments. The Andrus Family Field House provides space for the college’s athletic teams, marching band, and summer camps, among other uses.
Building a sense of community
Abernathy understood that the impact of Alma College does not end at the campus’ physical borders. In that vein, he made strides to improve “town-and-gown” relationships with the city of Alma and other community stakeholders, modeling positive citizenship for students along the way.
The Center for College and Community Engagement (3CE) was launched in 2021, actively assisting faculty within the classroom and connecting students with hands-on volunteer activities outside of it. The Alma College Community Engagement (ACE) Scholarship Program provided full-tuition awards to students in Gratiot, Isabella and Montcalm counties, in order to foster a sense of belonging among local students.
“Alma Aspires” was launched in 2019 in order to bring civic leadership together to develop and execute a visionary strategy to position Alma for renewed success. It attracted a range of community stakeholders, including leaders at Alma College, City of Alma, MyMichigan Medical Center-Alma, Masonic Pathways, Greater Gratiot Development, Inc. and Alma Public Schools, to improve the “People, Place and Prosperity” of the city of Alma and greater Gratiot County area.
Selfie-taking during commencement was a tradition during Jeff Abernathy’s presidency
Back to where he started
Abernathy intends to return to the Alma College faculty — returning to his roots, as a former English professor turned administrator — following a one-year sabbatical that begins July 1, 2025.
“Serving as Alma’s president has been a great privilege. I’m so proud of this community and all we have accomplished together. Despite the challenges before all colleges today, our future is bright,” Abernathy said.
Change by the numbers
- 17,655: square feet of public and retail space created in downtown Alma
- 446: residence hall rooms renovated
- 27: new undergraduate programs and a new core curriculum launched
- 9: new intercollegiate, varsity athletic teams
- 4: graduate programs, the first in the history of Alma College
