On the last day of June in 2007, Ronald R. Ingle will retire. At the close of that day he will have served as president of Coastal Carolina University for 14 years. He will leave office as the first president to serve the university since it became an independent entity in 1993. In addition to his presidency, Ingle served as Coastal's vice chancellor of academic affairs for four years, beginning in 1988, and was the interim president during 1992-1993. In all he has given almost 19 years to this institution.

At a time when the average tenure for a college president is six years, Ingle's endurance is uncommon. But longevity is the least salient aspect of this president's legacy. Ingle has led Coastal to remarkable levels of achievement in practically every endeavor of the institution, as the following figures illustrate:

Students: 1993: 4,453 2006: 8,049 Full time faculty: 1993: 187 2006: 265 Coastal Educational Foundation assets: 1993: $5.9 million 2006: $15.7 million Total square feet: 1993: 484,746 2006: 960,857 Degree programs: 1993: 20 undergraduate 2006: 39 undergraduate and 6 graduate

Some other more obvious examples of progress at Coastal during the Ingle era include a significant increase in university housing (now about 2,200 students living on campus) and student amenities and opportunities (cafeteria, shuttle service, more than 100 clubs and organizations, health services), which have transformed what was essentially a community/commuter college into a traditional residential university.

The addition of football, a move that Ingle championed for many years before making it a reality in 2003, has also brought about something of a transfiguration in Coastal's institutional identity. It has heightened the university's profile, stimulated enrollment and united alumni, the CCU community and the citizens of the region in an unprecedented way.

Fundraising, a primary preoccupation of the modern college president, has also flourished under Ingle's leadership. Coastal's 50th Anniversary Initiatives campaign, the largest capital campaign in the institution's history, brought in more than $14 million since it began in 2003. By December 2006, more than $21 million had been raised.

Undergraduate: Ingle at Wofford

The solid gains and swift tempo of Coastal's progress during this period is a reflection of Ingle's leadership philosophy. In order to keep pace with the institution's rapid growth he has often been compelled to rely on creative and sometimes unconventional methods for the execution of the plans.