J. Russell Nelson

Jack Russell Nelson (December 18, 1929 – March 23, 2016) was an American educator who served as a chancellor/president of the University of Colorado Boulder and Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona.

Life The Fine Arts Center at Arizona State University, named for J. Russell Nelson Nelson earned his bachelor's degree in business and economics from Pacific Union College in Napa Valley, California, and a Master of Business Administration and Ph.D in finance from the University of California Los Angeles.

From 1961-1970, Nelson served as an associate professor in finance at the University of Minnesota.

In 1970, Nelson moved to become vice provost and professor in finance at the University of Colorado Boulder. During his first stint at the university he was rapidly promoted, to associate provost (in 1971), vice president for budgets and planning (1972–74), vice president of administration (1974–77) until becoming acting chancellor in 1977 and chancellor in 1978.

ASU presidency

In 1981, Nelson became the fourteenth president of Arizona State University. Under Nelson, the university focused on education, upgrading its computer infrastructure, and expanding to a second campus.

Nelson's presidency was marked by a combative tenure with the athletics department, which fell into disrepute after losing seasons and ethics scandals. However, Nelson oversaw the construction of the Karsten Golf Course and started the first efforts to bring a Super Bowl to the Phoenix area. Research grants also doubled from 1981 to 1989. Richard Peck, a former English professor and then-provost and vice president of academic affairs, was named as interim president, serving until the installation of Lattie F. Coor on January 1, 1990. Nelson retired from academia in 1992.

Nelson died at his Tempe home on March 23, 2016 of complications of Alzheimer's disease.