Erickson also played a key role in helping ACE address issues related to accreditation. Federal policymakers rely on accreditation to determine which institutions will be eligible for federal student aid. However, accreditation is done by the higher education community to itself, so some policymakers questioned whether it was as rigorous or reliable as it should be.
"Rod has been involved in accreditation for his entire professional career and he brought a great deal of wisdom to our discussions," Hartle said.
Hartle said Erickson's input in these initiatives is a strong contributing factor in their success. "I really do not know anyone in higher education circles who commands greater respect than Rod Erickson," he said. "His reputation is simply the gold standard. He is smart, he is thoughtful, he is hard-working and kind."
Presidency
Erickson spent more than 12 years as provost at Penn State, which is longer than typical among his peers, many of whom were moving on to presidencies after three or four years as provost.
"There was some kind of internal clock that was suggesting that was the kind of expected career track, and various people were encouraging me, but I felt a very strong loyalty to Penn State, and to my colleagues here," Erickson said.
Erickson said he did look at a few other positions, especially in the earlier years. "I knew it would take something that was pretty fantastic to induce me to leave, and even as I was looking at a couple of other places, I was feeling very ambivalent about it. At some point I said to (his wife) Shari, 'If I'm that ambivalent about it I shouldn't really be considering things.' " Erickson said that realization kept him at Penn State. "Before I knew it I was one of the longest-serving provosts in the country, and really enjoying it."
Hartle said Erickson's commitment and dedication to Penn State are well known.
"Rod could have been president at a major research university if he had wanted to be. But Rod loves Penn State. He has enormous affection for the institution and he was fully expecting to conclude his career at Penn State as the provost. It was only because of the terrible events that transpired that he became president of the institution that he loves so much."
By all accounts, Erickson would have had a secure legacy as somebody who made enormous contributions to Penn State and to higher education in general.
"But his willingness to take on the presidency at a particularly difficult time, coupled with the gifts he brought to that — his personal integrity, his clear sense of mission, his firmness, and his soft-spokenness with a kind of iron in his spine, really I think is a contribution that always will be remembered," said Minnesota's Hanson. "He showed what was really important about what a fine institution Penn State is, and got the ship sailing in the right direction. It was an enormously difficult task, and I think everyone is just awed by how well he has done."
Sims, who was with Erickson the night he was named interim president, calls Erickson's contributions to Penn State incalculable. "I think he will most be remembered for his willingness to give himself voluntarily and fully to the interests of a great University when that University most needed him, and for reminding all of us that leadership in any university represents a public trust that must be treated with deep respect and managed with utter selflessness," he said.
Eva Pell, recently retired undersecretary of science for the Smithsonian Institution, worked with Erickson at Penn State starting in 1995, and succeeded him as vice president for research and dean of the Graduate School. Regarding his presidency, she said, "If you think about the expression 'he's a rock,' it was coined for Rod Erickson. He is strong. He is stable. He doesn't get rattled when things get difficult. And he's thoughtful. He's very analytical, while being a very kind and compassionate person, so the perfect person to take over this ship in uncharted waters and in rough seas."
Yarnal agrees. "I've heard it from everybody, 'Thank God that Rod was the one who took over after the scandal.' "
Erickson, who had begun to plan for his retirement in fall 2011, recalls his decision in early November 2011 to take on the presidency in the wake of the breaking scandal involving former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky.
"You can imagine at that time there were a lot of emotions swirling through my head," he said. "When I agreed to do it, I really had no idea that it would be two-and-a-half years. As events began to unfold, it became clear to me that it first of all would be very difficult for anybody from the outside to come in, not knowing anything about the University, and to deal with the issues facing us."
Erickson said another factor in his decision was that due to his administrative roles and particularly his role as provost, he had a greater breadth of knowledge of University operations than anyone else.
"There were areas that I didn't have a lot of experience in, but at least I knew the major drivers and our funding lines and our risks and the kinds of things we needed to do to stabilize, make sure that we were going forward," he said.
Erickson said it became apparent quickly that the University needed the stability of a sitting president, rather than an interim, but that the prospect of having a good pool of candidates at that point in time was not particularly high. After serving as interim for a little more than a week, his appointment as sitting president was ratified by the Board of Trustees.
"I thought, 'Well, this is not going to be a short-term kind of crisis. It's going to be much longer. We've got issues to deal with, we have to make sure things are stabilized before we go out to do a search. If I can have as many of those things completed successfully and behind us, whether it's the (fundraising) campaign or whether it's settling civil suits and things of that nature, the next president can come in without having to face a lot of those kinds of things and can look forward rather than looking back."
Mason sees brighter days ahead for Penn State.
"Penn State will get past this, and I hope Rod will be known as the person who helped them heal, got them through this really tough time — a time that the institution itself didn't deserve, but you know, none of us deserve some of the challenges that we're handed. It's unfortunate that it happened at Penn State, but I think it's fortunate that Penn State had Rod Erickson there, who was willing to step up because he had devoted so much of his life to the institution, and believes in it to this day, and understands that he will leave it a better place. I think that healing has begun at Penn State, and I think you can thank Rod Erickson for that."
As is typical, Erickson credits those around him for the University's ability to move forward.