Mourning the campus loss of Dr. Ray Wallace
Louisville Pipe Band “Amazing Grace” John Newton (1772)
Welcome and Introduction
Kelly Ryan
Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, IU Southeast
Sue Sciame-Giesecke
Interim Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, Indiana University
and
Kathy Girten
Acting Chancellor, IU Southeast
Joey Rivera
President and CEO, Rivera Group
Former Board of Advisors member and IU Southeast Alumnus
Ron Grooms
Indiana State Senator, 46th District
Donna Harvey
Executive Assistant to the Chancellor
“Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep” by Mary Elizabeth Frye
Louisville Pipe Band “Danny Boy” Frederic Weatherly (1913)
Matthew McClellan
Class of 2019, IU Southeast
Dana Wavle
Vice Chancellor for Administration and Finance, IU Southeast
Amanda Stonecipher
Vice Chancellor for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs, IU Southeast
“Digging” by Seamus Heaney
Closing Remarks
Betty Russo
Vice Chancellor for Advancement, IU Southeast
“Into the Mystic” Van Morrison (1969)
It is with great regret we announce that former IU Southeast Chancellor Ray Wallace passed away due to recently announced health issues.
Wallace assumed his role at IU Southeast on July 1, 2014. Before coming to IU Southeast, he held faculty and administrative positions at the University of Hawaii at Hilo, the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, Kennesaw State University, Northwestern State University of Louisiana, Troy University, Clayton State University and the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith.
Wallace served in several administrative roles, which prepared him well for leadership of the IU Southeast campus, including as a provost and senior vice chancellor, two deanships of arts and sciences colleges, a directorship of a state’s designated honors college in the liberal arts and sciences, a division head, a director of writing and as a university writing center director.
Born in Northern Ireland, Wallace came to the U.S. to attend Eastern Illinois University on an athletic scholarship. After completing his undergraduate and Master of Arts, he went on to obtain his Doctor of Arts degree in English at Illinois State University.
Memories and Stories
Please pass on my sincere condolences to Dr. Wallace’s family. My thoughts and prayers are with them now. Ray and I were first cousins and both of us left Northern Ireland in our younger years to become American citizens. Although our career paths took different trajectories (Ray, as an educator in Tennessee and me a Catholic priest in San Diego), the particular Irish gift for language and the charm of words, carefully crafted, were never lost with him. And although he made his home here in the US, I know his attachment to Irish history, particularly his interest in our grandfather’s service both at Gallipoli and the Western Front during the Great War, allowed him to have strong roots and an enduring sense of duty
"Raymond", as we grew up calling him at home in Antrim, has completed his life journey. May he now Rest In Peace.
Father Cávana Wallace
“I join President Pamela Whitten and our Board of Trustees both in expressing our deep sadness at Ray Wallace’s passing and in sharing our sincere condolences to his family,” said Susan Sciame-Giesecke, IU’s interim executive vice president for university academic affairs. “Chancellor Kathy Girten and I worked closely with Ray for seven years and will miss his friendship, and will always be grateful for his leadership and dedication during his time at IU Southeast.”
During his tenure at IU Southeast:
- Over $12 million in capital improvements were made to the campus.
- The number of new academic programs increased 132 percent, with an emphasis on online program development.
- The number of graduate students enrolled grew 30 percent from fall 2014 to fall 2020.
- Several new dining options were added, including a new Subway, which was added in 2016, and a new Papa John’s Pizza, which was added in 2018.
- $5.4 million was raised from 2017 to 2018, making it the second largest fundraising year in campus history
- IU Southeast’s first-ever internet radio station, Horizon Radio, was launched in 2018.
- Multicultural graduates were recognized at the inaugural Multicultural Graduation Celebration in 2019.
- IU Southeast raised more than $17 million as part of a campaign celebrating IU’s 200th anniversary, surpassing its original goal of $14 million.
Wallace was a proud naturalized U.S. citizen and skilled amateur photographer. His beautiful photographs were featured in local exhibits and in the IU Southeast Alumni Magazine. He loved the IU Southeast community and enjoyed celebrating the accomplishments of the students.
“Ray was a wonderful colleague. I especially loved Ray’s sense of humor, his infectious smile and his good cheer. We shared a love of tea, and I always appreciated the way Ray could pull a tea bag out of his pocket in times of need. I will miss him very much,” said Kathryn Girten, acting chancellor of IU Southeast.
We extend our deepest sympathy to the Wallace family and acknowledge, with sincere appreciation, his steadfast leadership and commitment to IU Southeast.
A celebration of life will be held on September 10, 2021 at 3 p.m.