This academic year, Elizabethtown College has a new vice president of administration, Robert “Bob” Wallett. The vice president of administration oversees many areas of college development, maintenance and planning, including the offices of Campus Security, Dining Services, Facilities Management and Construction, Human Resources, Campus Services and the College Store.
Wallett has more than 35 years of experience in comprehensive facilities management, administration and leadership of large, diverse organizations involved in the delivery of quality services and products to broad customer bases. Service areas included facilities management, engineering, environmental management, operations and maintenance, transportation, energy management, safety, security and emergency response services.
Wallett is a civil engineering graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, with a master of science degree in facilities management from the Air Force Institute of Technology and a master of science graduate in mechanical engineering from Boston University. He is a retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel, having previously served 20 years as a civil engineering officer. His assignments within the Air Force included positions as the Vice Commander of the 554th Civil Engineer Squadron, Heavy Repair, Squadron Commander and Base Civil Engineer at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois, and as Director of Environmental Programs at Headquarters USAF, the Pentagon.
He is also a former administrator of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission and served as the Commission’s facilities director until 2009.
Wallett recently served as the Director of Facilities at Loyola University Maryland, and his experience with facilities management and construction will be implemented in several projects at the College for the 2013-2014 academic year.
As a senior administration staff member, Wallett is involved in a number of Strategic Plan projects as laid out in the 2013-2014 Action Plan. Goal two of this Action Plan is to institute “Real-World Learning” for students, and Wallett is currently responsible for devising plans for updating facility programs for the Center for Sports, Fitness and Wellness.
Goal three of the Action Plan is “Stewardship of Resources,” and Wallett is involved in several projects detailed under this goal, including the development of a campus-wide ADA facilities plan, establishing an environmental sustainability group and drafting a sustainability plan, and completing unit reviews as part of the assessment of Institutional Effectiveness. Other upcoming projects include the design and construction of a fabrication laboratory for the engineering department, the design of an archives project for the High Library and the planning and drafting of much-needed renovations to Nicarry Hall.
“My objective this year,” Wallett said, “is [to] strengthen, coordinate, and advance the College’s commitment to the values and practices of environmental sustainability through the establishment of a sustainability group which encompasses all stakeholders of the College and institutionalizes the program with a sustainability plan.”
Wallett has developed several personal goals for his work at the College this year. A few of these goals include: completing “a thorough analysis of existing revenue streams, budget expenditures, organizational structure and service delivery processes”; striving for “continuous improvement to the College’s service delivery processes”; instilling “principles of accountability, collaboration, efficiency and effectiveness, innovation, objectivity and transparency in all operations”; “strengthening, coordinating and advancing the College’s commitment to the values and practices of environmental sustainability”; and “continuing to progress the Campus Master Plan and capital improvement projects.”
