In a duo of statements sent to faculty on September 23, 2020, SNHU announced that Interim Campus President Wil Zemp would be leaving SNHU, effective October 16.
Having previously served as President Paul LeBlanc’s Chief of Staff, Zemp took over as Interim Campus President this summer following the retirement of former Campus President Patty Lynott. Zemp took over the position during a very stressful time at SNHU, but despite the anxieties of the COVID-19 pandemic, he was able to guide SNHU successfully through a summer full of unknowns.
President LeBlanc expressed appreciation of Zemp’s work, saying, “Wil is brave, selfless, generous and as loving as any person I know, and we have been lucky to have him.”
LeBlanc also speaks of Zemp’s work at SNHU, stating, “Wil’s impact can be seen across the University. He served as my trusted Chief of Staff, built out the Innovation Center, helped bring LRNG here, played a role in standing up GEM, guided the creation of the 2018 Strategic Plan and supported the creation of the DEI Strategic Plan. He has been a counselor to colleagues, mentor to many, and the first SOS call for lots of people. His leadership in the early days of the pandemic was Wil at his best. There is no better person to have at your side in an emergency. With the campus transformation work, Wil hit a trifecta: giving us optics into campus operations we never had, building trusting and collaborative relations, and focusing people on what is possible while reaffirming the value of what is important.”
President LeBlanc’s statement also adds that the Board of Trustees will be meeting on October 16 to review Zemp’s work over the past few months.
In his own statement to faculty, Zemp says, “Paul made it easy to come to Manchester, NH and join his team…The work has been some of the most rewarding of my career. Paul has made it hard to leave, offered me a sabbatical, and asked me to stay on and lead the campus through and then after the transformation work. Because of this summer’s work and who you are as colleagues, it was almost impossible to say no to the offer.”
He continues, “There are hard decisions ahead, but also an exciting opportunity to reshape traditional residential education and continue offering students an amazing SNHU opportunity. I’ve been honored to be part of that effort and will be cheering for you all from afar.”
There were no reasons given as to why Zemp did not accept the post. President LeBlanc ended his message by saying, “The good news is that Wil and [his wife] Amy and their kids love it here in NH and they hope to stay in the area. So, we may be losing Wil from SNHU, but not from our lives. Which is good news indeed.” In addition, Zemp will be remaining at SNHU for a short time in a consulting position.
