David Graf will retire in June 2005 after 28 years at NIU – 11 as a dean in the College of Business.

“If you have these jobs for 10 or 12 years, you’ve accomplished about as much as you can and should really let someone else work here to bring fresh ideas,” Graf said.

A committee working with external search firm Baker-Parker is seeking a new dean to replace Graf around July 1.

Graf said one of his favorite aspects of the job is the day-to-day variety of his work.

“I never know exactly what’s going to happen when I come to work,” he said. “I have appointments, obviously, but there are other things that come up as well.”

One challenging aspect of Graf’s work was taking the college through a strategic planning process. This meant figuring out where the College of Business was going and what aspects were important to the college.

Faculty and students have enjoyed working with Graf over the years. It has been a delightful experience, said Ivan Legg, executive vice president and provost.

Students have worked with Graf in a steering committee group. The group is comprised of undergraduate business majors and discusses issues and concerns in the College of Business and NIU, said Brandon Dirksen, an operations and information management major and an undergraduate representative in the search committee.

“Dean Graf is an amazing person that shows honest concern for the students,” Dirksen said. “He is approachable and very personal.”

Graf does not have set retirement plans. He said he wants to help his wife fix up their vacation home in northern Wisconsin.

Graf said he has built up many memories while at NIU that he will miss but never forget. He said he will miss interaction with faculty and students most and with people in the business community.

Dennis and Stacey Barsema donating money to build Barsema Hall is a time of celebration Graf remembers.

“We had some great parties then. We were able to celebrate, and it put everybody in such a good mood and put us on the right track to feeling proud about our college and university,” he said. “Even if I stayed here, I wouldn’t be able to relive those again. Just watching the joy and excitement that people experienced because of [Barsema Hall] will last me the rest of my life.”

The committee formed to replace Graf includes faculty members, representatives from the College of Business Council, Faculty Senate, a graduate student, an undergraduate student and two business executives committed to the college, said Sarah Marsh, a representative from the department of management and co-chair of the committee.

Potential candidates will go through three screenings, leaving three or four final candidates.

Members of the committee said the search is going very well. It will be difficult to replace Graf, Marsh said. While the dean, Graf worked performed a lot of public relations for the College of Business and raised money for the college. He has also worked with alumni clubs.

“He’s done a good job of promoting outreach to the community,” Legg said. “We’ve had a very good dean.”