DALLAS—Dallas Baptist University’s board of trustees elected Gary Cook as chancellor and announced plans to appoint a search committee to seek a new president.
Gary CookCook, 65, who has served as DBU president nearly 27 years, will remain in that role until the trustees elect his successor and the new president begins to serve.
Cook will serve as chancellor five years. In this role, he will serve as goodwill ambassador for the university, particularly serving with alumni, donors, Christian international leaders, governmental leaders, ministers and denominational leaders.
Since Cook became DBU president in April 1988, the university has grown from 1,859 students in the previous fall to 5,445 in fall 2014. DBU’s net assets have grown from $19.9 million to $170 million, and the university has finished each fiscal year in the black the last 25 years.
The campus has expanded from 200 acres to 292 acres. Average SAT scores for incoming DBU freshmen have risen from 887 in 1992 to 1124 in 2014.
In addition, 80 percent of full-time faculty have doctorates or terminal degrees, compared to 52 percent in 1988. Another 9 percent of the full-time faculty are working on a terminal degree.
The number of master’s degree programs increased from three in 1988 to 25, while graduate enrollment has increased from 187 in the 1987 fall semester to 1,988 in the 2014 fall semester. DBU launched a Ph.D. in leadership studies program began in summer 2005 and an Ed.D. in educational leadership program in fall 2005.
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