Retiring ombudsman leaves positive legacy

April 14, 2008 —

OLD-SCHOOL -

Dick Thompson is retiring after 38 years of service with SVSU. In a variety of roles, Dick worked in the admissions office, for the registrar, as the dean of students, and as SVSU's ombudsman. But he's worked closest to us as the chair of the Professional Journalistic Practices Committee.

As the chair of the PJPC, Dick has seen many Vanguard editors, managers, and advisers come and go. He's reviewed hundreds of budget-related documents, several of which reflect financial gain, but also many that post nasty losses. He's debated with editors (including current ones) and advisers over courses of action, and he's talked through difficult issues with many of us. He wasn't afraid to sit people down and get the facts out.

He was also the de facto adviser during the periods when we went without one, and he was always helping out with even the smallest details, like lending us his SVSU credit card to book us a hotel for a conference (was anyone supposed to know that?), setting up the door code via a chance meeting in the Courtyard, and graciously signing the many purchase orders that ended up on his desk, some of which must have been a bit painful ($100 for umbrellas!?). These are just random examples. A list of such interactions would dwarf the Encyclopedia Britannica.

But while Dick was always involved, he never tried to control what we did. He let our various projects succeed or fail based on their merit. When he saw problems, he made suggestions and gave advice, but never told us to pursue a particular course of action or to adhere to any given philosophy.

Of the many inflammatory opinions, articles and editorials published in this paper, Dick never took a side on any of them. He understood explicitly the value of experience: The need not only to help students, but also to enable them. If we publish something disagreeable or controversial, we take the heat (and more rarely, the praise) for it. We can't just say, "talk to Dick," or whoever else. The responsibility is on our shoulders alone. And we wouldn't be nearly as satisfied with our organization if we knew we weren't really in control. We make mistakes, but at least they're our mistakes.

Dick's hands-off philosophy gave people that might have otherwise blown through college with very little responsibility a great deal of it, and that was perhaps his most important contribution to the students of SVSU. That kind of responsibility is essential to intellectually preparing students for work in the post-college world. Whether they failed or succeeded in their college posts, the students and alums in the numerous organizations that Dick worked with during his tenure at SVSU are substantially better prepared for today's job market than their peers who simply sat through class and went home.

In many ways, Dick defines public service. In a time where many universities view learning activity as but minor component of a college's business, Dick is an old-schooler: Someone who believes in educating the entire mind, inside and outside the classroom. Serving as the Vanguard's mentor in many ways, Dick has done just that, by letting our own experience teach us.

We wish him the best in retirement. Hopefully the deer treat him well.