McDaniel College President Roger N. Casey selected as The Daily Record’s Icon Honors recipient

The Daily Record has selected McDaniel College President Roger N. Casey as a 2020 Icon Honors recipient.

Casey will be recognized among 25 recipients during a virtual awards celebration on Dec. 14. Icon Honors awards recognize leaders across Maryland in business, law, politics, and nonprofits for their long-standing commitment to Maryland and professional accomplishments as leaders and innovators.

One of the longest-serving college presidents in the State of Maryland, Casey took office as McDaniel College’s ninth president in July 2010 and oversees McDaniel’s campus in Westminster, Md., as well as the college’s European campus in Budapest, Hungary.

The honorees are known for moving their organizations and Maryland forward by growing jobs and by their community involvement. They are also champions of their industries and have demonstrated a sustained commitment to community service.

“This year’s Icon Honors recipients are known for their notable success and demonstration of strong leadership, both within their fields and within their communities,” said Suzanne Fischer-Huettner, group publisher of The Daily Record. “They are mentors, leaders and innovators. The Daily Record is pleased to honor them with this distinguished lifetime achievement award.”

Throughout his 10 years as president of McDaniel College, Casey has supported the college’s commitment to access and affordability, with McDaniel awarding over $50 million in grants and scholarships annually, while raising McDaniel’s national prominence. In particular, McDaniel has been lauded for its efforts to recruit, enroll, and graduate high-need students and has been ranked highly by U.S. News & World Report, Washington Monthly, Money Magazine, and The Princeton Review, among others.

In September, Casey announced his plans to retire at the end of the 2020-2021 academic year in June 2021.

Under his leadership, McDaniel has enrolled record-breaking first-year classes and broke the 1,800 mark in undergraduate enrollment for the first time in the institution’s history this fall. Through partnerships with community-based organizations, McDaniel has also increased its diversity on campus with nearly 50% of the current incoming class identified as students of color.

New scholarships have been developed, including legacy scholarships as well as the Dorsey Scholars Program from the largest bequest for scholarships in the college’s history. During his time, McDaniel has launched the Center for Experience and Opportunity, Global Initiatives and Global Fellows, and the McDaniel Commitment, which guarantees that every student, guided by mentors, can create their personal educational path. The college has also introduced more than 10 new majors and programs of study, in addition to six graduate programs.

Additionally, he has overseen construction and major renovations, including the Kenneth R. Gill Stadium, and the McTeer-Zepp Plaza, named for the late Ira Zepp '52, Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies, and Victor McTeer '69, one of the college’s first Black graduates, as well as Hoover Library, new Kinesiology labs and classrooms in Gill Center, and the Roj Student Center.

Casey has taken on roles as a national and regional higher education leader and currently serves as chair of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU) and on the American Council on Education (ACE) board of directors. He also chairs the Centennial Athletic Conference and is the immediate past-chair for the Maryland Independent College and University Association (MICUA). He was named a 2019 Influential Marylander by The Daily Record.