By DAVID DUPONT
BG Independent News
Top administrators at BGSU are on the move— one coming in, one staying longer and assuming more duties, and one, Chief Financial Officer Sheri Stoll, heading into retirement.
At Friday’s meeting, university’s Board of Trustees:
- Approved the the hiring of Ravi Krovi as provost and senior vice president and professor with tenure in the Department of Accounting and Management Information Systems. Krovi’s selection was announced earlier this month. In a related action, the board approved the hiring of his wife, Shernavaz Vakil as Professor with Tenure in the School of Inclusive Teacher Education using a spousal accommodation.
- Appointed Derek van der Merwe as vice president for athletics strategy in addition to his current position as director of athletics and extended his contract to 2030.
- Was apprised by BGSU President Rodney Rogers, of Stoll’s decision to retire in January, 2026. The announcement was made to the campus community earlier in the week.
- After the meeting, Rogers said: “Sheri Stoll has been such a leader in the university. Indeed those will be big shoes to fill.”
But, he continued, because she has been so successful in managing BGSU’s finances, the position will be “very attractive to an individual who wants to come to an institution that continues to push forward, is strong financially, and wants to continue the momentum.”
Not many institutions of higher education in the Midwest are in that kind of favorable position, Rogers said. “It’s a great legacy and a great foundation.”
Stoll said that this is the right time to retire for her and for the institution. “I feel BGSU is in a good place for a handoff.”
The university next master plan is in the wings. The budget for next year looks good. “I’m feeling better about the state’s willingness to invest in higher education.”
She also said that Cecilia Castellano, vice president for enrollment management, has led the effort to recruit more students.
A new provost is coming in and Rogers is set to continue as president for three years, Stoll said.
On the personal side, she said: “My mother is 85, almost 86, and is still in great health. … She has a whole list of things she’d like to see and do.”
Now, her position at BGSU is not very flexible. She and her husband, who retired five years ago, have two grandchildren 1 and 4, in Colorado, who they’d like to visit more. “They change so fast.”
By announcing her retirement almost a year in advance, it should allow for some overlap between Stoll and her successor.
Rogers said in last week’s announcement that Sue Houston, senior advisor to the president, and Natalie Jackson, general counsel and chief partnership officer, will lead the search.
The promotion for van der Merwe reflects the need for BGSU to adjust to the changing landscape of Division I athletics, Rogers said.
He came away from meetings focused on athletics with other presidents f thinking that BGSU was fortunate to have van der Merwe as director of athletics, a position he’s held since October, 2022.
Rogers described him as “a creative thinking,” adding “he’s very strategic. He’s got the ambition to continue to compete at the highest level.”
He noted that the new position has “strategy” in the title.
“In this period of transition, when there’s so much uncertainty those institutions that can outmaneuver and outthink the competition will make moves.”
“Sports is driving so much about how the brand of a university is defined,” van der Merwe said.
That includes club sports. “Our club sports are growing rapidly and are really differentiating us from a lot of other universities. Our students have requested the experience, and we see that as a huge opportunity to drive enrollment.”
He also said the university needs to continue to bring outside athletic events and camps to campus.
“How do we leverage our facilities and try to engage a whole new generation of potential students that wants to have an athletic experience?”
Stoll during a discussion of residence hall projects noted the need to have those facilities available for summer programs, which are projected to continue to expand after two record summers.
“We need to look at more critically at all these factors,” van der Merwe said, “and expand that lens to support the growth of the university. This is something I’m eager to take on.”
Krovi, who will assume duties at BGSU in late spring, comes to the university after serving as provost and senior vice president at Weber State University in Utah since 2020.
[RELATED: Top administrator from Utah university hired as new BGSU provost]
He has background in both engineering and business, including artificial intelligence, two areas in which the university has developed new programs.
The university is developing a new major in which students will pair studies in artificial intelligence with another discipline of their choice.
Before he took the position at Weber he was on the faculty of the University of Akron, including serving as dean of the College of Business Administration.
