Kansas State University

Letter from President Linton

Submitted by President Linton

Dear K-State Community:

What a joy it is to be a part of this incredible university. The welcome I have received on our campuses and in our surrounding communities is inspiring. After just one week, you have made me feel like part of K-State.

It is amazing to witness how engaged our students are and how dedicated our faculty and staff are to making this great university even greater. With the remarkable support of our alumni, donors and friends, it is clear just how much everyone loves this university. This passion creates a strong foundation for our important work together.  

My leadership approach begins with listening and learning — and I’ve seen and heard so many inspiring things in just five short days. Now in my second week as your president, I want to share some of my initial observations and thoughts:

• Optimism is core to the Wildcat spirit. This is so visible in your ideas, actions and outlook. Creating a vision that allows us to tap into that optimism together and believe that we’re on a path toward greatness will be an important part — if not the most important part — of my job here.
• Securing the support and funding that allows us to do our great work is also at the top of my list. Clearly our people are the foundation of our strength, and ensuring our folks have the ability to do their very best is important to me.
• A concept that has driven action throughout my career is to help make the impossible possible, and that concept is certainly here with me at K-State. I want to support the big ideas and dreams of this university by helping find the pathways that bring them to fruition.
• Our university has weathered a lot of uncertainty and change alongside the rest of the world during these past two years. But the ability of K-Staters to persevere is second to none. You have innovated, you have adapted and you have carried this university forward into a new state of possibility.

I am here to be part of a team that makes a difference, a real difference. We will continue to make this an exceptional learning and working environment for our students, faculty and staff, and we will make this the best land-grant university possible.

I am honored to be a part of the K-State community — together, we are going to do great work.

Go ‘Cats!
Richard Linton
President