MARYVILLE, Mo. - Dr. John Jasinski drove his Chevy Nova to the campus of Northwest Missouri State University in the summer of 1986, fresh out of graduate school and intent on staying for a year or two.

The Michigan native and wife, Denise, weren't very familiar with Missouri, let alone the campus. They made the journey down, sans air conditioning, not knowing what to expect.

"We were young," said the former broadcasting instructor Friday after his inauguration as the 10th president of the 104-year-old university. "My wife had been here once. 'I guess we'll go to Missouri for a year or two, see how the faculty experience goes, and go back to Michigan.'"

Dr. Jasinski, freshly adorned with a large silver president's medallion draped over his shoulders, said the medal wasn't as heavy as it appeared.

"Everyone thinks it is, but it's not that bad," he said.

In the Performing Arts Center, where the ceremony was held in front of a packed house, Dr. Jasinski attempted to walk from the stage to the lobby area. He was stopped every few steps to hug or shake the hand of friends, alumni, his former students and family. He explained to the News-Press along the way that after his first year at Northwest, he was offered a teaching position in Michigan that he nearly accepted.

"We both looked at each other and said, 'We're staying in Missouri,'" he said. "Two years into it, we knew we were making a difference."

At the podium with a platform party of 40 behind him, Dr. Jasinski turned to thank former president Dr. B.D. Owens for turning the 1979 fire that destroyed part of the administration building into a growth opportunity for the campus. He also turned to thank former president Dr. Dean Hubbard, whose many efforts during his 25-year tenure put Northwest in the international spotlight. Dr. Hubbard appointed Dr. Jasinski to a master planning committee 20 years ago, an appointment he said spun him into an administrative path.

Presidents and provosts from Truman State, Southeast Missouri State University, the University of Central Missouri, Graceland University and Missouri Western State University attended the inauguration. Like his fellow administrators, Dr. Jasinski leads a university in tough economic times where uncertain state budgets threaten funding for higher education.

"This is not the time to cry foul, not the time to lay back and wait, not the time to recoil in these challenging days," he said. "Rather, Northwest can and will seize control of our surroundings."

Dr. Jasinski was hired in July, beating three other finalists. He served Northwest as assistant provost until 2001, and as executive vice president/chief academic and operating officer at Northwood University in Michigan from 2007 to 2009. He also has served as a councilman for the city of Maryville.

Jimmy Myers can be reached

at jimmym@npgco.com.