{"id":11973,"date":"2025-10-01T08:58:47","date_gmt":"2025-10-01T12:58:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/?p=11973"},"modified":"2025-10-29T14:03:26","modified_gmt":"2025-10-29T18:03:26","slug":"from-student-leader-to-university-president","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/2025\/10\/01\/from-student-leader-to-university-president\/","title":{"rendered":"FROM STUDENT LEADER TO UNIVERSITY\u2000PRESIDENT: HOW RUSSELL KEEN\u2019S GEORGIA SOUTHERN EXPERIENCE SHAPED HIM AS A LEADER"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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When Russell Keen, Ed.D., (\u201999, \u201914) was appointed president of Augusta University in July 2024, it was more than a professional milestone \u2013 it was a full-circle moment. A first-generation college student raised in Augusta, Georgia, the journey to university leadership began years earlier at Georgia Southern University, where he discovered his passion for education, leadership and institutional advancement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Georgia Southern wasn\u2019t just a college choice for Keen \u2013 he said it always felt like the place he was supposed to be. As a high school student, he frequently traveled to Statesboro for football games, and he was drawn to the energy of the campus and the strength of its academic programs, particularly in its College of Education. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe prospect of going to Georgia Southern and preparing for a career in education was very appealing to me,\u201d noted Keen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Keen\u2019s time at Georgia Southern was more than an academic pursuit, it was a formative journey. From his early days working at Archibald\u2019s Restaurant (now Gnat\u2019s Landing), to his deep involvement on campus and in the community, Keen developed skills and relationships that would help shape his career.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A FOUNDATION IN LEADERSHIP<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Keen first emerged as a student leader as president of Phi Sigma Pi National Honor Fraternity and later became president of the Student Government Association (SGA). His tenure as SGA president coincided with a pivotal transition in University leadership, as Bruce Grube, Ph.D., became Georgia Southern\u2019s 11th president in 1999. Keen worked closely with administrators, faculty, staff and state leaders, gaining firsthand experience in governance, diplomacy and institutional advancement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI had so many wonderful professors and administrators who were mentors for me,\u201d Keen said. \u201cThe culture lived out by the faculty, staff and administrators at Georgia Southern enabled me to learn just as much outside of the classroom as I did inside the classroom.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of Keen\u2019s most enduring inspirations was Gladys Love, who worked in Georgia Southern\u2019s Russell Student Union.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI still tell people that one of the best student affairs professionals I\u2019ve ever met was at Georgia Southern,\u201d Keen said. \u201cMrs. Love knew students by name and demonstrated the care and compassion you would expect coming from a member of your extended family. She embodied the type of student-centered culture that everyone in higher education should aspire to emulate.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following graduation, Keen worked in banking for a year and began making plans to move to Atlanta. However, a blind date changed everything. After he got home from his first date with Karen Brinson (\u201999), he knew he\u2019d met his future wife. Less than a year later, he proposed to her on Sweetheart Circle, and they were married in 2001. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Committed to staying in Statesboro, Keen accepted a position as Georgia Southern\u2019s director of annual giving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BRINGING LEADERSHIP TO AUGUSTA UNIVERSITY<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

After graduating, Keen\u2019s career took him from fundraising roles at Georgia Southern and the University of Georgia (UGA) to a decade-long tenure serving Georgia Southern in various roles leading up to vice president for government affairs and external relations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2015, when Georgia Southern President Brooks Keel, Ph.D., transitioned from Georgia Southern to lead Augusta University, he asked Keen if he wanted to go home \u2013 it was an opportunity Keen embraced, joining Keel as executive vice president and chief of staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt that time, I\u2019d spent just as much time in Statesboro as I had at home in Augusta,\u201d said Keen. \u201cSome people said, how could you work for another institution when you love Georgia Southern so much? And I\u2019ve equated it to when you have your second child. For those of us who have more than one child\u2026at first, you couldn\u2019t possibly imagine loving another one as much as the first, right? However, your capacity for love grows. That\u2019s the best way I can describe my love for both Georgia Southern and Augusta University.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the next nine years, Keen\u2019s work helped earn him the reputation of a leader who effectively builds strategic partnerships, engages stakeholders and secures critical resources to advance institutional priorities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During this time, he also earned a Doctor of Education in higher education management from UGA. When Keel retired in July 2024, Keen was appointed president of Augusta University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the helm, Keen oversees the state\u2019s preeminent public health sciences and medical research university. A public research institution with 11 colleges and schools including the Medical College of Georgia (MCG), the Dental College of Georgia, and the Georgia Cyber Innovation and Training Center, Augusta University has a statewide mission.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The university is comprised of world-renowned faculty and physician-scientists who dedicate themselves to life-changing and lifesaving translational research. Through its partnership with Wellstar MCG Health, Wellstar Children\u2019s Hospital of Georgia, and the entire Wellstar Health System, researchers and physician-scientists are on the cutting edge of innovation and discovery related to cancer, immunotherapy, brain health, stroke, heart and vascular care, diabetes and obesity, and fetal and maternity care. Additionally, MCG partners with institutions throughout Georgia to expand its reach and access. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Recently, those partnerships took a powerful turn of fate. MCG Savannah, the medical school\u2019s third four-year campus, opened its doors on Georgia Southern\u2019s Armstrong Campus with an inaugural cohort of 41 students in July 2024. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe opportunity to leverage the Medical College of Georgia\u2019s longtime relationship with St. Joseph\u2019s\/Candler Health System and Georgia Southern\u2019s Armstrong Campus is a transformative collaboration that will help strengthen health care across the state,\u201d Keen said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keen\u2019s first year as president has been one of incredible growth, including record enrollment at Augusta University with 11,584 students, historic state funding including $99 million for a new translational research building, nearly $30 million in additional philanthropic funding, and a renewed commitment to creating a campus culture where every interaction matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A VISION FOR THE FUTURE<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Keen was officially invested as Augusta University\u2019s second president in April, an occasion that was marked by overwhelming support from the community and the state of Georgia. The investiture brought together many of his family, teachers, colleagues and mentors who helped shape his education and leadership journey from the very beginning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs the years go by for all of us, the moments or encounters with people from different seasons of our lives are really special,\u201d he said. \u201cHaving my first grade teacher, eighth grade teacher, middle school and high school band teachers, and high school chorus teacher take part in the ceremony was incredibly meaningful to me and really highlights the power of education at all levels.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As president, Keen remains committed to strengthening Augusta University\u2019s research enterprise, expanding access to education and deepening its impact across the state and beyond. He is particularly focused on positioning Augusta University as one of the premier health sciences research universities in the nation and a destination of choice for faculty, staff, students and collaborators. Augusta University is focused on changing lives through education and saving lives through research and clinical care. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a privileged opportunity to do this,\u201d Keen said. \u201cFirst Lady (Karen) Keen and I believe that this is our calling, and we are focused on serving our students, faculty, staff, community and state for as long as we possibly can. We thank God for the opportunity and are profoundly grateful to Chancellor Perdue and the University System of Georgia Board of Regents for their confidence and support.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Augusta University Dr. Russell Keen photographed on the AU Summerville campus in Augusta, Ga., Monday afternoon June 23, 2024. <\/em>

Photo by Michael Holahan
6\/24\/24 5:14:41\u202fPM<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Russell Keen, Ed.D., (\u201999, \u201914) was appointed president of Augusta University in July 2024, it was more than a professional milestone \u2013 it was a full-circle moment. A first-generation college student raised in Augusta, Georgia, the journey to university leadership began years earlier at Georgia Southern University, where he discovered his passion for education, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":898,"featured_media":11974,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[90],"class_list":["post-11973","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","tag-spring-2025"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11973","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/898"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11973"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11973\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11974"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11973"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11973"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11973"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}