Rock Jones

President Rock JonesDr. Rock Jones, a multifaceted andvisionary leader, came to Ohio WesleyanUniversity in 2008, enthusiasticallywelcomed by the University’s Board ofTrustees, students, faculty, staff, and thecommunity.Prior to his selection as OhioWesleyan’s sixteenth president, Dr. Jonesserved Hendrix College, a national liberalarts college in Conway, Arkansas, in avariety of leadership positions. In 2001,Dr. Jones became executive vice presidentand dean of advancement at Hendrix. Hethen spearheaded A Commitment to NationalLeadership: The Hendrix Campaign, acomprehensive campaign for endowment,facilities, and increased annual supportto position Hendrix as a national leaderin engaged liberal arts and sciences. The President Rock Jones and Melissa Lollar Jonescampaign exceeded its original goal of$70 million more than a year prior to its scheduled conclusion, resulting in an increase of the goalto $100 million and a two-year extension of the life of the campaign.In preparation for the campaign, Dr. Jones chaired a strategic planning committee of faculty,staff, trustees, and alumni whose work ultimately led to the creation of the Hendrix Odysseyprogram of engaged learning experiences; the program has led to rapid growth in enrollment andhas brought significant national recognition to the College. He participated in senior leadershipat Hendrix during a dynamic time that included a 35 percent growth in total enrollment; planningand construction of nine residential facilities, two science facilities, three art buildings, a wellnessand athletics center, a student center, and a home for an endowed program in language andliterature; a strategic repositioning of the institution with the launch of the Odyssey program;substantial growth in the faculty and new endowment funding of an innovative faculty fellowshipsprogram; and a more than two-fold increase in the size of the endowment.From 1996 to 2001, Dr. Jones was vice president for enrollment and dean of admission and financialaid at Hendrix. He led Hendrix in developing a national recruiting base that has attractedan academically stronger and more diverse student body. He was one of the conveners of institutionsincluded in Loren Pope’s book, Colleges That Change Lives, and helped organize a consortiumof those schools to work together to promote the values articulated in Pope’s writing. He wasasked to assume additional responsibilities for one year as interim vice president for student affairsduring an important time of transition in that division. Dr. Jones began his work at Hendrixin 1995 as the College’s chaplain, establishing and implementing a full religious life program forstudents of all faiths.Among many community and civic responsibilities, Dr. Jones served as chair of the board ofthe local United Way and as a member of the board of directors of the Arkansas Repertory Theatre.Dr. Jones received a Ph.D. in educational administration from the University of Texas-Austin.He also holds a Master of Divinity magna cum laude from Duke Divinity School. He received aBachelor of Arts with honors in history from Hendrix College, where he was the first student toreceive the President’s Medal, now presented annually to the student who best exemplifies theschool’s ideals.Dr. Jones was born in Arkansas and reared in Missouri. Following graduation from college,he spent a year in England. Prior to his career at Hendrix, he served nine years as pastor of UnitedMethodist congregations in Arkansas.Dr. Jones and his wife, Melissa Lollar Jones, live at Pritchard House on Oak Hill Avenue withtheir 15-year-old daughter, Anna. Their son, Christopher, 19, is a first-year student at HendrixCollege, joining his sister, Alissan, 22, who is a senior majoring in elementary education.