Biography

Roger N. Casey is the ninth President of McDaniel College in Westminster, Maryland, and Budapest, Hungary. During his tenure, McDaniel has been rated highly by U.S. News, Kiplinger’s, and “Colleges That Change Lives”; named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll; and commended by The New America Foundation for its support of lowincome students. Since taking the helm in 2010, Dr. Casey has overseen an award-winning renovation of Englar Dining Hall and other areas of the Decker College Center and the construction of Kenneth R. Gill Stadium, donor financed at $8.3M. The College completed a $3.7M renovation of Hoover Library and WMC Alumni Hall and four residence halls, funded largely through matching a $5M gift from alumnus Leroy Merritt, for whom the College named its newest academic building. Recent gifts include the largest scholarship bequest in the College’s history (~$6M), which funds the Dorsey Scholars. His initiatives include the creation of the Center for Experience and Opportunity (CEO), a single office providing comprehensive support to assure all students engage in out-of-class learning experiences, and Global Fellows, a curriculum allowing students to internationalize any major. Dr. Casey teaches courses in media, popular culture, drama and leadership. He has spoken internationally to hundreds of groups and authored numerous articles and the book, “Textual Vehicles: The Automobile in American Literature.” His cultural analysis has appeared in The New York Times, Forbes, The Chronicle of Philanthropy, USA Today and on CNN, ABC and CBS. His current scholarship addresses both generational issues and social media in higher education. A Kellogg Fellow, Roger has traveled to nearly 90 countries, studying the role of vision in creating diverse communities. President Casey sits on the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) steering committee to assess the future of independent colleges and leads the CIC New Presidents’ Institute program in enrollment management. He also serves as chair of the Board of Trustees for the Maryland Independent College and University Association (MICUA), and sits on the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU) Student Financial Aid Committee and the executive board of Maryland-DC Campus Compact. He is the co-founder of the Associated Colleges of the South’s Teaching and Learning Workshop. Dr. Casey has also received theatrical recognition. His credits include acting in David Mamet’s “Oleanna” and directing Pulitzer Prize-winners “Three Tall Women” and “How I Learned to Drive.” He has worked extensively with his wife, Robyn Allers (an actor, writer and former director of the Cornell Fine Arts Museum). A Phi Beta Kappan and first-generation college graduate, President Casey holds an M.A. and a Ph.D. in English from Florida State University and a B.A. from Furman University in his native South Carolina. He previously served Rollins College in Florida as Provost & Vice President for Academic Affairs and Birmingham-Southern College in Alabama as an Associate Dean and professor. He received Distinguished Teaching awards from Birmingham-Southern and Florida State, was a nominee for the Carnegie National Professor of the Year, and was awarded the Decoration of Honor by Rollins.