Feb. 19, 2025
Tara McCrackin retiring as president of Ferris State University’s Kendall College of Art and Design
Tara McCrackin, the 14th president of Ferris State University’s Kendall College of Art and Design, is retiring from the post on June 1, 2025, saying she believe the time is right for a change.
McCrackin, a KCAD alumna who later was a respected faculty member, was appointed interim president in July 2019 by Ferris State President David L. Eisler, who then appointed her to be president in March 2021.
“It’s been my pleasure to serve KCAD, first as a faculty member and for the past six years as its president,” she said.
Tara McCrackin is a Kendall College of Art and Design graduate who returned to become a faculty member then president after a career in interior design.
“I am proud and honored to have served as KCAD’s president and as a member of the Ferris State University’s leadership team. I have enjoyed my service supporting KCAD’s unique programs and accomplished faculty, and interacting and working with the staff, students, and alumni. I am excited about the continued transition of KCAD into a more comprehensive and integrated part of the university with the advantages and opportunities that it will bring to KCAD as a college of Ferris State University. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in that process. That transition is well underway and so it is a good time to retire from my position as president.”
McCrackin graduated from KCAD’s Interior Design program in 1997 and was recognized as the Interior Design Studio Excellence Award winner that year. She returned as a faculty member in the Interior Design program in 2002.
Ferris State President Bill Pink expressed his appreciation for McCrackin’s leadership as he accepted her retirement.
“Ms. McCrackin is a remarkable leader who has been a champion for keeping KCAD positioned at the forefront of art and design education, not only in West Michigan but throughout the country,” he said. “Her substantial contributions have positively impacted KCAD’s future and positioned it well for its continued transition to a more integrated college of Ferris State. Her efforts helped develop the blueprint for this transition.”
Pink noted McCrackin’s passion for KCAD’s mission and vision, and developing community partnerships and relationships that underscore KCAD’s relationship with the broader community. He praised McCrackin’s focus on impactful partnerships for events such as ArtPrize and the Wege Prize.
Pink also announced that Stephen Halko, who has been KCAD’s dean of Academic Affairs since 2021, will serve as interim dean for the college through the 2025-26 academic year.
Halko has been a fulltime professor at KCAD since 2009, and in 2014 became chair of both the Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Fine Arts Drawing programs. He served as vice president of the Kendall Faculty Association in 2015 until becoming the interim dean of Academic Affairs in 2019. He became dean of Academic Affairs in 2021.