CORVALLIS, Ore. — Oregon State University says Paul Risser, who served as the school’s 13th president from 1996 to 2002, has died at age 74.
Risser died Thursday in Norman, Oklahoma.
Current university President Ed Ray said in a statement that Risser led the school during a time of transition, helping to re-energize the athletics program, increase enrollment and guide OSU through “difficult financial times.”
Ray notes that Risser also led the successful effort to establish the OSU-Cascades Campus in Bend.
Risser left the Corvallis school in 2003 to return to his home state as chancellor of the Oklahoma state system of higher education.
Havenbrook Funeral Home says a memorial service is scheduled Monday in Norman.
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