In memory of President Emeritus W. Jack Magruder, EdD, DHL (hon.), ’22
Posted: March 26, 2025
Aug. 7, 1935-Nov. 17. 2024
ATSU’s 11th president, Dr. W. Jack Magruder, passed away Sunday, Nov. 17, 2024, in Kirksville, Missouri. A native of northeast Missouri, Dr. Magruder earned his bachelor’s degree in chemistry and mathematics from Northeast Missouri State Teachers College (now Truman State University), where he also met his wife, Sue, in 1954. They married shortly after and shared a lifetime of partnership and devotion. Mrs. Sue Magruder preceded Dr. Magruder in death on May 29, 2021.
Dr. Magruder began his career at Truman State University in 1964 as an assistant professor of chemistry. He later advanced to professor, head of the Division of Science, and eventually, vice president for academic affairs. In 1994, he became Truman’s 13th president, leading with distinction. He was granted the titles of president emeritus and professor emeritus of chemistry before he retired in 2003.
His career included numerous leadership roles in higher education, including president of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges and chair of the Missouri Coordinating Board for Higher Education Committee on Transfer and Articulation. He also served on the Board of Trustees for The Higher Learning Commission and as president of the Truman State University Foundation Board.
Dr. Magruder’s academic accomplishments were equally impressive. He earned a master’s degree from the University of Northern Iowa and a doctorate from the University of Northern Colorado. He then completed graduate work at Louisiana State University and Harvard University’s Institute of Educational Management. In 2002, he received an honorary doctor of humane letters degree from ATSU’s Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Before becoming ATSU’s president, Dr. Magruder brought his visionary leadership and commitment to education as a member of the University’s Board of Trustees. During his tenure as president from 2008-12, Dr. Magruder was instrumental in founding ATSU’s Missouri School of Dentistry & Oral Health. Dr. and Mrs. Magruder were granted president emeritus and first lady emerita statuses during Dr. Magruder’s retirement reception in June 2012.
“Dr. Magruder will be deeply missed by colleagues, students, alumni, and friends,” said ATSU Chancellor Craig M. Phelps, DO, ’84. “His legacy of dedication and service to ATSU and higher education will endure through the lives he touched.”