Lipscomb community mourns the loss of former trustee Mike Adams

Lipscomb community mourns the loss of former trustee Mike Adams

Office of Public Relations & Communications | 02/02/2026

The Lipscomb University community is mourning the loss of alumnus and former trustee Mike Adams, a nationally respected higher education leader whose career spanned nearly four decades. Adams passed away Jan. 25 following a brief illness. He was 77.

Adams, a 1970 graduate of Lipscomb University, served on the university's Board of Trustees for six years and was a longtime advocate for the transformative power of education. In recognition of his impact, he was named Lipscomb's Alumnus of the Year in 2011.

"As an alumnus, trustee and lifelong advocate for higher education, Dr. Mike Adams believed deeply in the power of education to transform lives and communities," said Lipscomb President Candice McQueen. "He served Lipscomb faithfully and led with integrity, humility and a strong sense of calling. His impact reaches far beyond our campus, and we are grateful for the legacy he leaves for higher education and for generations of students whose lives were shaped by his leadership."

Adams is perhaps best known for his tenure as president of the University of Georgia (UGA) from 1997 to 2013, a period during which the institution rose to national prominence as one of the country's top 20 public research universities. Under his leadership, UGA expanded enrollment, strengthened its faculty, increased fundraising and transformed its campus, investing more than $1 billion in construction and renovation-while improving academic quality across the board. Federal research expenditures nearly tripled during that time, and the university added 127 endowed professorships and 14 Georgia Research Alliance eminent scholars. Upon his retirement, Adams was named president emeritus and regents' professor, a title he held until August 2015.

Before UGA, Adams served as president of Centre College from 1989 to 1997, helping guide the institution's academic reputation and national standing. His leadership in higher education also included service at Pepperdine University, where he was vice president for university affairs from 1982 to 1989 and later returned as chancellor from 2015 to 2018, focusing on strengthening relationships and expanding the university's reach in Southern California and globally. Earlier in his academic career, Adams served on the faculty of The Ohio State University.

Prior to entering higher education, Adams worked in public service as chief of staff to former U.S. Sen. Howard Baker and later as deputy commissioner of economic and community development for former Tennessee Gov. Lamar Alexander.

A widely respected figure in the field, Adams was elected by his peers to lead several national organizations, including the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities and the American Council on Education. He also served on the executive committee of the National Collegiate Athletic Association.

Over the course of his career, Adams received more than 50 honors, including the Knight Foundation Award for Presidential Leadership, the Pioneer Award for Leadership in Civil Rights and the James T. Rogers Award, the highest honor bestowed by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. He also received the Governor's Award in the Humanities from the Georgia Endowment for the Humanities and was inducted into the Tennessee Independent Colleges and Universities Association Hall of Fame.

Adams earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Lipscomb University and his master's and doctoral degrees from Ohio State.

He is survived by his wife, Mary Lynn Ethridge Adams ('69); their sons, David Adams and Taylor Adams (Carrie); and three granddaughters, Campbell, Tucker and Lawson Adams.

Services will be held Monday, Feb. 2, at 2 p.m. EST at the First Presbyterian Church of Athens, Georgia.