College of Charleston Provost Suzanne Austin shared the following message with the campus community on Wednesday, Nov.18, 2020:
Dear Colleagues,
Godfrey Gibbison
With very mixed emotions, I’m writing to announce the departure of Godfrey Gibbison, dean of the Graduate School. Dean Gibbison has accepted a position as Dean of Extended Learning and Global Programs at Cal State San Marcos in San Marcos, California. His last day at the College is December 31.
While I have known Dean Gibbison for only a short time, I have seen his positive impact on the College and his passion and enthusiasm will be sorely missed. As interim dean of the Graduate School since fall 2018 and dean since October 2020, Dean Gibbison has advocated for a greater sense of community among our graduate students and has brought a more detailed focus on social media and technology. He has diligently pursued funding opportunities for the Graduate School and revised the budget in order to offer more scholarships.
As Dean of Professional Studies, Gibbison launched the Bachelor of Professional Studies in 2013. He significantly expanded this degree-completion program by adding market-driven areas of study that were relevant to the Lowcountry’s economy. He also created innovative ways to reach broader populations of adult students, built collaborations with two-year institutions and embraced novel, just-in-time marketing strategies.
Dean Gibbison is also responsible for the creation of the Bachelor of General Studies, which was the College’s first fully online degree, the Certificate in Project Management and the Certificate in Sustainable Business Solutions. Included among his many other accomplishments is the expansion of services to military and veteran students as well as the expansion of credit transfer from the Joint Services Transcript.
As an active member of the Charleston community and ambassador for the College, Dean Gibbison served on various committees with the Charleston Metro Chamber and the Charleston Regional Development Alliance. In addition to acting as a technical advisor with the Regional Economic Score Card, he served on the boards of the YMCA of Greater Charleston, Ingevity Community Leadership, Goodwill Excel Center and Pastoral Parish Council at St. Patrick Catholic Church.
We have been very fortunate to have Dean Gibbison’s influence and expertise at the College. Many of his efforts support our new strategic plan and will help us achieve our shared goals. In this way, his legacy will endure on our campus for many years to come.
Please join me in wishing Dean Gibbison the very best in his new endeavor on the other side of the country at Cal State San Marcos. I plan to launch an internal search for Dean Gibbison’s replacement and I will follow up with more detailed information soon.
Sincerely,
Suzanne Austin
Provost and Executive Vice President
Division of Academic Affairs
