Associate VP retires after 38 years of service

Doug Warner receives warm affection from his associates at his farewell reception, celebrating his years of dedicated service to this institution. Shane Maryott / UVU Review

After 38 years of dedication and service, Associate Vice President for Finance Doug Warner retired on June 30.

Throughout the years, Warner was able to witness immense growth within this institution. He has worked in positions such as dean of general education and business, associate vice president for academics and executive director of budgets among others.

Warner returned to his home state of Utah to teach high school after completing his doctorate of philosophy in business education at Arizona State University. In 1972, he took his first position at UVU, then called Utah Technical College at Provo, in the Office Education Department. In this position he was primarily responsible for teaching students secretarial skills, as well as helping them find internship positions as secretaries in the community.

When Warner first was employed, the classrooms and common areas were merely pastures and a sand pit. After the technical college outgrew its Provo location and moved to its current location in Orem in the late ‘70s, the only buildings in place were the Sparks Automotive, Woodbury Business and a portion of the Sorensen Student Center.

Warner has also seen numerous academic and programatic changes throughout his years here. While office education is no longer taught, many worthwhile programs have been created and expanded.

Warner had the opportunity to put in place the financial plan that made the first three bachelor’s degrees possible in 1992. The university originally petitioned for eight, but were pleased with the three they were granted: degrees in business, technology management and liberal arts. The school has continued to grow at a rapid pace and today offers 58 bachelor’s and three master’s degrees.

“It’s a great place to work. They’ve been very good to me. They must have been, otherwise I wouldn’t have been here so long,” Warner said.

Warner was replaced by Michael Francis as the new associate vice president for finance. He began his new position on July 1.