GVSU Board names Susan M. Jandernoa as chair

Grand Valley State University’s Board of Trustees named Susan M. Jandernoa as its chair at its June 24 board meeting. Jandernoa has served on the Board of Trustees since 2019, most recently as vice chair.

She taught elementary school in East Grand Rapids and Catholic schools for 30 years. Jandernoa now dedicates much of her time to community service. In addition to her role on the GVSU board, Jandernoa is the chair of the Michigan Health Endowment Fund, and serves on the boards of Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital Foundation and Broadway Grand Rapids.

“Thank you to the board for your trust in me,” Jandernoa said. “It’s been a pleasure serving as the vice chair these past two years, and I look forward to serving as your board chair. I care about this university and all the people that make it such a dynamic, exceptional, thoughtful and special place to serve.”

The board also appointed Trustee Elizabeth Emmitt as vice chair. She currently is employed as an advisor for Spectrum Health. She worked for the State of Michigan and served as deputy chief of staff for Gov. Rick Snyder. 

The board also approved a resolution honoring outgoing Chair Megan Rydecki, a Grand Valley alumna who has served on the board since 2015.

In other business, the Board of Trustees:

• Approved a budget that included investing $68 million in financial aid, nearly all of its estimated appropriation from the state of Michigan. The budget included a 3 percent raise for faculty and staff. Trustees also approved a 2.9 percent increase in undergraduate tuition, the second lowest increase since 2004. The change amounts to a $402 annual increase for students. In passing the budget, trustees noted that even with the tuition increase, GVSU ranks 10th out of 15 Michigan public universities in terms of tuition and 12th in terms of total cost of attendance, including room and board.
• Voted to authorize a new public charter school academy, Gerald Dawkins Academy, in Grand Rapids. The K-5 school is expected to open in fall of 2023 in the city’s Boston Square neighborhood.
• Voted to authorize the charter for West Michigan Aviation Academy, which previously was authorized by Bay Mills Community College. The move strengthens the connections between GVSU and the WMAA, which includes internships for GVSU students and a strong pipeline of WMAA students choosing to attend GVSU, said Rob Kimball, associate vice president and executive associate to the President, who leads GVSU’s Charter Schools Office.
• Recognized Vice President for University Relations and Secretary to the Board of Trustees Matt McLogan as Vice President Emeritus upon his retirement June 30. McLogan had served as a vice president at GVSU since 1987.