Even though he is set to retire in a few weeks, the curtain will never fully close on the career of Thomas University President Dr. Gary Bonvillian. His impact on education — locally, nationally and globally — will ripple for generations.

Bonvillian, who became TU’s 10th the president on July 1, 2006, led the university through a period of explosive growth. During the fall semester of his initial year on the job, TU had a fall enrollment of 685 students. The number grew to 1,179 domestic students last fall, including 10 satellite campuses around the region. Enrollment grew during nine of his 10 years at the helm.

The growth necessitated major changes to the TU landscape. The Main Campus features a new academic building, Smith-Bonvillian Hall, and was restructured recently to make it more pedestrian friendly.

The West Campus sports a renovated gymnasium and the new Student Life Center. Two new residence halls are set to open there this summer.

Nationally, Bonvillian pushed TU into the spotlight as a charter member of the Yes We Must Coalition, a nonprofit organization that now totals almost 40 small, private, non-profit colleges and universities across the U.S. that seek to raise public awareness, share resources, collect data and raise funds together in order to improve graduation rates for under-served students. Bonvillian serves as one of the charter directors of the coalition and has served as a presenter in Yes We Must Coalition’s presentations to representatives of the U.S. Department of Education.

TU greatly expanded its international presence under Bonvillian, too. He led the way in establishing partnerships with universities in China to provide degree programs in nursing and business. TU now has more than 1,250 students in China, and this enrollment is expected to grow much larger.

Clearly, TU has benefited greatly from Bonvillian’s vision and leadership. He is certainly worthy of the celebrations set for him and his wife Wednesday.

Festivities will begin at noon with a reception open to the public in front of Smith-Bonvillian Hall. During the reception, community and TU leaders will be on hand to share a few comments about the Bonvillians’ contributions to Thomasville and the university.

At 4 p.m., a celebration for the Bonvillians will be held in the TU gymnasium. Representatives from each of TU’s athletics teams will make presentations to the Bonvillians.

Both events are open to the public. Dr. Bonvillian will officially retire on June 30.