Calvin College has hired a 1986 graduate to be its next vice president for advancement.
In June Ken Erffmeyer will leave a five-year post as vice president of human resources for The Thomson Corporation, recently renamed Thomson Reuters. He will leave his home state of Minnesota to begin his new duties at Calvin and will start on June 9.
For Erffmeyer the move has the feel of a homecoming, even though he's originally from Minnesota.
"The Calvin Alumni Association this year is talking about Calvin as home," said Erffmeyer, who served on the association's board from 2004 to 2007, "and for me Calvin has always felt that way. It's a place where I grew in numerous ways, including as a Christian. It's where I spent four very important years of my life. So coming back to Calvin as an employee feels good."
In his new post Erffmeyer will oversee Calvin's alumni and public relations department, its communications and marketing team and the development office (Calvin currently is in the midst of a $150 million capital campaign). All told, the advancement division at Calvin numbers some 50 employees.
"I'm excited to partner with a team of talented individuals," he said, "people who have a shared passion and appreciation for Calvin College. And I'm eager to be part of our collective effort to educate young men and women for lives of Christian service. Making a Calvin education available to students now and for generations to come is an exciting challenge."
After graduating from Calvin, Erffmeyer earned a master's in business administration in marketing from the University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management. In addition to his work at Thomson, he also worked for 15 years as a management consultant for Deloitte & Touche and Andersen Consulting.
And for the past eight years he has been integrally involved with Calvin Christian School which has K-8 campuses in Edina and Blaine and a high school campus in Crystal. He served on the board of directors and led the board in the establishment of the high school in 2004.
Calvin president Gaylen Byker is looking forward to Erffmeyer's arrival.
"Ken has a passion for people and a calling to Calvin," said Byker. "That's a powerful combination. He is returning to his alma mater after almost 20 years away, but he has stayed connected to this place. And he has a great team of people (in advancement)."
Erffmeyer is married; he and his wife Dawn have four children.