Thackaberry retires from
International Student and Faculty Office

by Mark McGowan

Mark Thackaberry sports an NIU T-shirt with a large "USA" printed atop the university's name, each letter colored with the wavy red, white and blue stripes of an American flag.

Although he's visited many countries of the world, he believes the most beautiful is the United States. If given a chance to live abroad, he would stay put. And, now retired, his only vacation plans involve enjoying summer visits at his cabin on Apple Canyon Lake near Galena.

It might seem ironic, considering his three decades creating, nurturing and leading NIU's International Student and Faculty Office, but Thackaberry's explanation is logical.

"Some people travel," he said. "The world comes to me."

Thackaberry capped his 33-year career at NIU in December.

He came to the university in 1969 as an admissions counselor who never had an ambition or plan to work in higher education. Indeed, he holds a bachelor's degree in economics from Knox College and a master's of business administration from the University of Illinois.

In 1972, he became foreign student adviser.

At the time, international students on NIU's campus numbered only 77. When that enrollment reached 400, he was head of the International Student Program. As the headcount passed 600, Thackaberry was named director of the International Student Office.

In 1975, he was invited to Kuala Lampur, the capital of Malaysia, to offer advice to government leaders who wanted to solve the adjustment problems some Malaysian students experience when they attend U.S. schools.

Staff in the International Student and Faculty Office handle admission of international students (many of them Malaysian) representing the customs and cultures of about 95 nations, help to obtain visas for students and faculty, counsel students on immigration and personal matters, refer students to helpful campus resources and organize host family programs and other social programs.

Thackaberry and his staff also keep tabs on immigration laws, which now literally change daily in the aftermath of Sept. 11. It is altering his role, and part of the impetus behind his retirement.

"A lot of the things I did are going to change drastically," said Thackaberry, who recently received a Lifetime Achievement Award from NAFSA: Association of International Educators, Region V. "This is a new age. We're enforcers rather than advisers."

He takes with him a treasure chest of memories and a list of friends around the globe, literally meeting and working with tens of thousands of international students over the decades. NIU's name is spread by word of mouth in foreign countries, and the brightest students from many of the best families apply here.

"Overseas, NIU is probably a much more prestigious school than it is in the United States," he said. "We really have powerful people who have graduated. One of the richest men in Thailand is an alum of NIU. Cabinet members. Bankers. The president of a railway system. Military officers. Children of diplomats. If somebody who's important to you goes to NIU, or their children go to NIU, you go to NIU."

In retirement, Thackaberry plans to stay in DeKalb, collecting and selling antiques, serving as a friend of NIU's international program and volunteering to combat illiteracy.

1-13-03