A bobblehead and an engraved clock were not all the gifts to be bestowed upon outgoing Duquesne University President Ken Gormley.
While Gormley thought he might be getting “one of those nice Duquesne chairs” for his office in his new post as university chancellor, he and his wife were instead surprised Saturday with their name being placed upon the student union, now the Ken and Laura Gormley Student Union.
“This is too much to process right now, never could have imagined something like that,” Ken Gormley said shortly after the name was uncovered. “People from Swissvale don’t have buildings named after them.”
The foundation for the surprise was laid nearly a year ago, when Adam Wasilko, associate vice president for student involvement and dean of students, suggested Gormley should come to the Festival on the Bluff, a student celebration ahead of final exams, in his final year as president.
While Gormley said it sounded fun, what he ended up getting “was not on my bingo card for today,” he said.
Gormley is stepping down as president July 1 after 10 years. He is staying on as university chancellor.
Provost David Dausey will replace Gormley as the university’s 14th president.
“This is a statement for our regard for Ken and Laura and all of the countless accomplishments that Ken has been able to lead throughout his last decade here as our president,” said Diane Hupp, chair of the Duquesne University board of directors.
Gormley said he knew something was fishy when he spotted Jack McGinley, past chair of the university’s board of directors, who he said is a “mischief maker.”
For his part, McGinley said Saturday’s surprise was something of a “quiet revenge.” In September 2024, Gormley was the one who surprised McGinley with McGinley’s name being placed on a new student apartment building on Forbes Avenue, McGinley Hall.
“They shocked me when they named a building after me,” he said. “It’s kind of humbling to see your name on a building.”
Naming the student union for Gormley is an appropriate recognition of his accomplishments, McGinley said.
“He’s a passionate, visionary leader who works collegially to accomplish the strategic goals that are set forth by the board of directors and the administration, and always does so with the view toward bettering the student experience and student education,” McGinley said. “He’s been a tremendous president of a great university and has made the university even stronger. He’s been a dynamic and effective leader.”
The union was chosen because of Gormley’s focus on the student and student experience, McGinley said.
“The union is the heart and center of student life on campus,” he said. “I thought it was a natural to marry Ken and Laura Gormley to this student union center.”
McGinley said it may have been appropriate to put Laura Gormley’s name first.
“She has been a tremendous support to Ken and the university as a whole,” he said. “She’s been a wonderful first lady of the university. She’s been supportive of the students and faculty during Ken’s tenure. She’s done a marvelous job for Ken, supporting him and the university.
“She has given so much to this university, and I really felt it was right she be included, and so did the board.”
As part of the honor, the Ken and Laura Gormley Endowment for Student Success is being created. McGinley said the board as a group has raised more than $3.8 million to support it.
Annual distributions from the endowment will be focused on a scholarship, with criteria to be decided by the Gormleys, and a student resource fund focused on student persistence and providing increased support to students and their families when needed the most.
The endowment will also support student athletes and club sports, focused on travel to competitions and practices, uniforms, shoes and equipment.
Other areas the endowment will support are student wellbeing and funding for study abroad, student organization and activities, and student leadership development.
“I think that the endowment will help ensure the union becomes and stays a dynamic center of the campus,” McGinley said.
The Gormleys, coming up on their 40th wedding anniversary, have four children, three of whom are Duquesne graduates, and six grandchildren.
“My biggest dream is that some of those little grandbabies are going to end up being lucky enough to go to Duquesne and sit in this student union some day,” Ken Gormley said. “This means more than you can ever possibly know.”