MSU BILLINGS NEWS – Dr. Ronald P. Sexton, who spent more than 30 years as a higher education leader in Billings and was the first person selected as chancellor at Montana State University Billings, passed away this past weekend. He was 87.

A private family service in Billings will be held in the coming weeks.

Sexton was a stalwart leader for his alma mater Eastern Montana College (the predecessor of MSU Billings) and was a mentor to many Montana University System leaders.

"Ron dedicated most of his professional life to EMC and MSUB," said current MSU Billings Chancellor Dr. Stefani Hicswa. "He was very proud of all we have accomplished in recent years. His legacy for access and excellence will live on. He will be missed. I will miss seeing him and his good counsel."

A Billings native, Sexton grew up on the city's South Side and worked his way through his career at Eastern Montana College, the predecessor of MSU Billings. A baseball fan and player, he was a pitcher for the EMC Yellowjackets from 1956-1959.  During his time as an administrator, he worked with the Department of Athletics to find community support to get collegiate baseball back to Billings. He was successful, completing the administrative work in 2004, announcing the comeback in 2005, and seeing the Yellowjackets return to play in the spring of 2006.

Sexton graduated from EMC in 1959 with a Bachelor of Science degree in social sciences and history, and a minor in health, physical education and recreation.  In 1964, he earned the Master of Science degree in guidance and counseling, with a minor in psychology, also from EMC.  After being awarded a Doctor of Philosophy-education degree from the University of Oregon in 1971, he completed post-doctoral study at Boys Town in Omaha, Neb., under the auspices of the University of Kansas. 

He served as a faculty member and clinical director for the College of Education at Central Michigan University from 1971-1977, but the pull of home brought him back to the Eastern Montana College campus in 1977, when he became director of the EMC Institute for Habilitative Services and a professor in the School of Education. 

In August 1987, Sexton was named EMC's academic vice president and professor of special education and reading. On July 1, 1994, he became acting chancellor when Dr. Bruce Carpenter retired and continued as a professor of special education and reading. Then, on March 22, 1995, he was appointed chancellor of Montana State University Billings. He retired from that role in August 2010. 

During his tenure as chancellor, Sexton played a role in many changes at the university as well as in the Montana University System. He was the first Montana university administrator to publicly challenge state leaders to focus attention and resources on two-year post-secondary education. He pioneered a campaign of awareness and a call for change, working to gather community and legislative support, resulting in increased funding for two-year education. He also worked with the MSU Billings Foundation to acquire 6 acres of land on the West End for expansion of the City College campus in the early 2000s.

Sexton's energy and efforts also helped get Montana legislative approval of a $29.5 million bond issue for capital improvements on two-year campuses across Montana, including $11 million for construction of the Health Sciences Building that was completed in 2008. He also led an effort to garner about $3 million in federal funds to develop training programs for construction, healthcare and energy industries. 

Sexton understood the importance of the Billings community to MSU Billings. He led efforts to build bridges from the university into the various economic sectors in Yellowstone County, pushing for degree programs in health administration, health and human performance, two-year programs in nursing and radiological technology, and various industry sectors. Under his leadership, the two-year campus expanded its role and scope in order to address workforce training needs across the region, preparing to better serve the students and employers of the future.

As a first-generation college graduate, Sexton understood the importance of financial support for students. During the latter part of his tenure as chancellor, he worked with the MSU Billings Foundation on its first-ever comprehensive campaign, "People, Pride & Promise: The Campaign for Excellence at Montana State University Billings." He was instrumental in helping raise more than $30 million for the campaign, identifying, cultivating and soliciting donors and setting an example by making his own financial investment.

Keeping down the cost of higher education was always important to Sexton. He knew, firsthand, how hard it is to work through college, and often could be found sitting with students, listening with understanding as they shared their stories of struggle.  He was known to have given money from his own pocket to students who just needed a bit of extra money for textbooks.

His legacy of giving mirrored his legacy of leadership at MSU Billings.

In 2004, he established the Marilynn A. Sexton Scholarship Endowment to honor his wife, Marilynn, and her passion for education. The scholarship endowment provides scholarship assistance to freshman students, with preference given to non-traditional students. The first scholarship was awarded in academic year 2015-2016.

The MSU Billings Foundation and Alumni Association in recent years established the Ronald P. Sexton Award for Professional Commitment. The award annually honors alumni who dedicated 10 or more years of their professional lives as employees at MSU Billings, significantly contributing to the advancement of the university.

Underlying it all was Sexton's belief that MSU Billings was more than the sum of its parts.

"I will leave knowing this university is positioned to continue to evolve to do great things," Sexton said in comments to the MSU Billings faculty and staff when he retired in 2010.  "We have outstanding faculty who excel in teaching, scholarly work and service to the community. We have incredible staff who labor tirelessly to do what is necessary to help our students succeed. We have the academic, administrative and student affairs leadership in place that can guide our university to greatness.  And we have perhaps the strongest, most active and supportive collaborative partnerships between the university and the public/private sectors of any comparable area in the country."

Those who attended MSUB basketball games over the past few decades will remember that Sexton had a permanent seat at the top row of the floor bleachers of Alterowitz Gym. He rarely missed a home game – even in retirement – and Seat 19 midcourt on the upper row reserved his spot.

He and Marilynn were also season ticket holders for the Billings Mustangs baseball team and had perfect seats in the shade on the mezzanine area behind home plate. It was the ideal place for Sexton to watch young pitchers and hitters, the next generation playing the game he loved so well.  

Sexton and his wife, Marilynn, met while they both were students at Eastern Montana College.  They have four children and three grandsons.