James F. Eckler: Building a College from the Ground Up

James F. Eckler: Building a College from the Ground Up

In higher education, titles often tell only the last chapter of a much longer story. The word dean suggests arrival. It rarely reveals the years of risk, doubt, and steady construction that come before it. James Eckler’s path to becoming Dean of the Reap College of Creative and Professional Studies at Marywood University began with a first. He was the first person in his immediate family to complete a college degree. That achievement did not com…