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On Friday, Jan. 22, Mary Elizabeth Stivers stepped down from her position as Grand View’s chief academic officer – also known as the provost. Many students don’t even know of the provost or what her job entailed. But now that she’s gone, could it affect the students?

In order to understand what Stivers did and what she accomplished in her time at Grand View, President Kent Henning and a few faculty members spoke about Stiver’s legacy. Stivers was at Grand View for seven-and-a-half years. Each of her colleagues talked a lot about her implementing the core curriculum that students use today.

“We had had the same general education curriculum for quite a number of years, at least 20, and things in the world change,” said Pam Christoffers, special assistant to the provost, of general education before Stivers came to Grand View. “Employers are looking for different skills and knowledge than they have in the past.”

Stivers, alongside the president and faculty, pushed for a change in the curriculum.

In addition to overseeing all academic affairs, the provost is also in charge of all of the hiring on campus.

“During her time here, we have grown the size of the faculty, and we have had a number of people retire,” Henning said. “So, roughly half of the full-time faculty members have been hired while Mary Elizabeth has been here.”

When Stivers came to Grand View, Henning said, “we gave her a pretty hefty list of assignments.”

She was able to complete a lot of the tasks she set out to do. According to Christoffers, her influence and legacy will live on for years to come.

“Over time we will see better the impact and the influence she had on her leadership with the core curriculum,” Christoffers said.

Josh Woods, assistant professor of psychology, worked closely with Stivers during his first year-and-a-half at Grand View.

“I think she was a powerful provost because she changed Grand View forevermore,” Woods said. “She put it on a trajectory with the president and it is a better school than it was. I would have never considered going to Grand View College, and now I think it is a fantastic school and there is so much opportunity here.”

Stivers may be gone, but to many, her legacy and spirit will live on at Grand View. She will be remembered by many in the community as a hardworking woman who put everything she had into this university. As students and staff await the arrival of the new provost, we can only hope that the newest member of our faculty can maintain the same high standard for the staff and continue to raise the bar for the students.