Hanson’s tenure in Bemidji included leadership of BSU’s first-ever comprehensive fundraising campaign, Imagine Tomorrow, which concluded in June and surpassed its initial goal by raising $36.54 million for scholarships and academic investment.

He also placed renewed emphasis on international recruitment and education abroad, and championed BSU’s distinction as a north woods campus that offers residential students a transformative college experience.

“My time at BSU was fantastic,” Hanson said in a press release Wednesday. “It was really fun to be with the board today and be recognized for what a whole team of people got accomplished over the course of six years.”

BSU president Faith Hensrud took over for Hanson this summer and was recently inaugurated during BSU homecoming events.

Hanson was recommended for emeritus status by system Chancellor Steven Rosenstone.

In his remarks to the board, Rosenstone noted Hanson’s successes in managing the university’s budget through challenging times, BSU’s efforts to deliver bachelor’s degrees in nursing on the campuses of four Minnesota State two-year colleges, and his process to reinvent Northwest Technical College, which helped lead to the college’s successful reaccreditation. He also noted the extensive construction projects that reshaped the Bemidji State campus during Hanson’s tenure, such as the overhaul of the Birch Hall residence hall. the re-imagining of Memorial Hall into a state-of-the-art home for BSU’s business and accounting programs, and the debut of the University Heights student housing complex.

Rosenstone recalled his visit to Bemidji in 2013 to stand with Hanson as the university officially launched the Imagine Tomorrow campaign.

“I witnessed first-hand the community’s excitement about the campaign and what it would mean to the university,” Rosenstone said. “That excitement translated into the campaign goal being exceeded, so that the campaign doubled the endowment and scholarships the university can award.”