Wisconsin Union director named

Mark Guthier, assistant director for program services for the Indiana Memorial Union at Indiana University, has been selected as the new director of the Wisconsin Union.

A native of Fort Wayne, Ind., Guthier, 36, is scheduled to start Tuesday, Nov. 6. He will replace Theodore (Ted) Crabb, who will retire Jan. 5 after 33 years as director.

“The search committee was impressed with all of the candidates, but Mark stood out because of his experience in the programming area,” says Paul Barrows, vice chancellor for student affairs. “He comes to us from one of the most prominent unions in the country and has a wealth of experience.”

“For me, this is an opportunity to work at one of the premier college unions in the country,” says Guthier, who first visited Madison during IU-UW football weekends as an undergraduate in the 1980s. “I always remembered Wisconsin’s Memorial Union as the place to be. It was really lively, packed with students and full of life.”

Guthier says he is honored to succeed Crabb and previous Wisconsin Union director Porter Butts to become only the third director in the union’s 73-year history. He says he is particularly excited to begin planning the union’s 75th anniversary celebration in 2003-04.

“I feel a real sense of honor to become part of this legacy,” he says.

Since 1992, Guthier has served as assistant director for program
services, managing activities and programming for the Indiana Memorial Union. During his tenure, he helped coordinate 250 special events each year, attracting speakers and guests that included Arthur Ashe, Lech Walesa, Spike Lee, Bob Dylan, Mikhail Gorbachev, John Mellencamp, Maya Angelou and the Smashing Pumpkins, among others. In addition, Guthier helped oversee the union’s indoor and outdoor recreational activities, a program offering short leisure classes and an art gallery.

He worked as an Indiana Union program adviser from 1990-92. He also taught classes related to student union management and law as an assistant professor in IU’s school of education. He holds an undergraduate degree in accounting and a law degree, both from IU.

Guthier also is legal counsel for the Bloomington, Ind.-based Association of College Unions International. He is married and has five children. His wife, Amy, is a Janesville native and has an undergraduate degree from UW-Stevens Point.

A college union should be a “community builder,” helping to bridge political, philosophical, cultural and racial differences through gatherings, lectures, events and activities, Guthier says. Partnerships between students and staff were critical to the IU union and Guthier says he plans to work closely with students at UW–Madison.

“Mark is a person with high qualifications and a strong background in student development and student programming,” says Crabb, who decided to retire to give the new director ample time to plan the anniversary celebration. “I am confident that he will promote and expand the union’s vital role on campus as a gathering place for all members of the university community, a center for out-of-class learning and a laboratory for the development of student leadership and service.”

Guthier was selected after a nationwide search by a 13-member search and screen committee, made up of faculty, academic and classified staff, and student representatives. The committee was co-chaired by Peter Antaramian, president of the Union Council, and Paul Barrows, vice chancellor for student affairs. Guthier’s salary will be $89,000.

Other finalists for the position were David Mucci, director of the Kansas Unions at the University of Kansas, and Richard Pierce, facilities director for Wisconsin Union at UW–Madison.

The Wisconsin Union operates Memorial Union and Union South, where faculty, staff and students can eat, relax, socialize, and enjoy artwork, films and live performance. The Wisconsin Union is a membership organization with more than 75,000 annual and lifetime members in addition to all enrolled faculty, staff and students.