What was your most memorable SDSU transformational event/idea over the past 14 years? Share your memories with President Weber. Send us your comments, thoughts and memories to be posted on this page. marcomm@mail.sdsu.edu

Dear President Weber,

Congratulations on your retirement and the many, many successes that you have accomplished at SDSU.  The university is certainly lucky to have enjoyed your leadership through the past 15 years.  One memorable "moment" for me actually lasted about a month last June when you joined the fight to save our proposed second degree baccalaureate program for nursing.  I witnessed the considerable efforts you engaged in; felt the support for faculty and staff you exuded; and appreciated the empathy and concern you demonstrated for students.  Even though the outcome was not what we hoped for, one could not have asked for more from you. I sincerely appreciated the man you are during that time! I wish you and your wife a VERY happy retirement.

Catherine Todero RN PhD, Director, School of Nursing

Dear Steve and Susan,
 
Congratulations and Kudos on 15 years of incredible contributions of leadership to both the SDSU campus and the community!
 
Steve, from our first meeting in that empty office at SUNY Central 16 years ago (a cold and snowy day -- dreary as only Albany can be in winter!) to the present, I had and continue to have great affection and admiration for you -- you are a great leader and a fine person.  Susan, you are a force of nature in your own right and because of you, many many wonderful things happen which would never happen were you not involved.
 
Roberta and I consider you friends and wish you continued happiness and success in your amazing lives.
 
Ira W. Krinsky, Ed.D

When SDSU concluded their search for a new President 15 years ago, I  assumed that it will be another invisible bureaucrat that always  stayed on the "other side of campus", never knowing what the School of  Art, Design and Art History was all about.

Imagine my surprise to discover that President Weber was not only a  very personable, friendly and accessible individual, but also  genuinely interested in what we did in the art programs here.  On top of that, he also was an avid woodworker!  Since I teach woodworking as  part of our furniture design curriculum,  we gave him an "honorary"  key to our shop and it was really a hoot to see him show up without  his tie, and with his tool bag and wood, and having him work in our  midst over the years. Some of our newer students would see him and ask  "who's the tall guy with the beard and dockers?"  He was always  working on something neat for his grandchildren.  It was really  wonderful to have President and his administration who understood the  value of the creative arts in an academic environment.

I will miss Dr. and Mrs. Weber, and I am so grateful for their support  and enthusiasm.  Yes, he will be a tough act to follow, indeed.  He  set a high standard of excellence for the University.

I am very proud to be a part of SDSU during President Weber's tenure.

I wish him the very best in retirement and look forward to seeing more  of his woodworking projects in the near future.

Wendy Maruyama, School of Art, Design, and Art History

Back in 1998, I chaired the search committee for a new provost and I sent President Weber an e-mail update on the search on a Sunday morning.  Was I surprised to receive an e-mail reply, almost immediately!  When I e-mailed back that I was surprised that the president was doing university business on a Sunday morning, his reply was that it “was a labor of love and a love of labor.”   I think this characterizes Steve Weber’s approach to San Diego State University – he obviously loves the University, and his tireless work and attention to everything and everyone in it shows that love.

Steve Roeder

 

My most memorable event was being honored by President Weber in 2006 as one of the Top 25 awardees.  This award from him added value to the work I’ve been doing with the MESA Engineering Program (MEP) in the College of Engineering for almost 20 years.  Though Engineering has been the smallest college on campus and MEP serves approximately 15% of the college, President Weber has supported our work.  I hate to see him go, but wish him a great retirement.

Theresa M. Garcia, M.A. '91 & '09, EP Director, SDSU College of Engineering

When I first heard of President Weber's plans for retirement in 2011 I was (and remain) saddened for SDSU. For it is always a sad time when some of the best from among us decide to leave or retire. My experiences with President Weber were always quite positive. Not only has he courageously put his own career and reputation on the line in standing up for certain cases of academic freedom, but he respected the freedom of scholars on campus in ways I never thought an administrator would. Moreover, President Weber spent the bulk of some evenings in face-to-face conversations with student groups on campus, answering various of their concerns about campus life. He was and remains very concerned about the welfare of the entire student body, as he has strongly supported policies that deepen SDSU's commitment to students of color. He has also had a significant hand in increasing the endowment of SDSU rather considerably. It is not easy to find a president who understands the business side of academic affairs as well as the academic concerns. I also know him to be an outstanding person, morally speaking. President Weber is the real deal, and I will greatly miss his presence and influence on this campus. I worry that SDSU will not be able to replace him with a comparable administrator. I wish President Weber and his fine family all of the very best in his retirement, though if he should ever change his mind........that would be just perfectly fine by me!

J. Angelo Corlett, Professor of Philosophy 

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