A True Honor

Mazachek, longtime leader at Washburn, named president at Texas university

JuliAnn Mazachek. Photo by Doug Stremel

From The Ichabod
By Annie Flachsbarth

After 30 years, Washburn University is losing a truly dedicated administrator and faculty member.

In March, JuliAnn Mazachek was named president of Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, Texas. MSU Texas is a nationally recognized liberal arts university and a member institution of the Texas Tech University System.

“Dr. Mazachek has proven herself a skilled leader and an outstanding educator,” said Jerry Farley, president, Washburn University. “We will miss her, but I certainly understand the reason the Texas Tech University System wants her to lead Midwestern State University.”

Mazachek was born in Topeka but grew up in St. Louis. She earned her doctorate in accounting from the University of Kansas, and then joined Washburn’s accounting faculty in 1992 after a friend referred her.

“When I interviewed here, I looked for signs they really cared about students and it wasn't just part of their story. But it was real,” Mazachek said.

“Everything I saw at Washburn was true to trying to make a difference, and that aligned with what I thought was important.”

As a first-generation student, Mazachek was impacted by two faculty members when in college, making a student-centered approach to learning her priority.

“Those faculty changed the course of my future by just a few small interactions we had before and after class. I knew firsthand what a difference really caring, authentic professors could make,” Mazacheck said.

In 1998, Mazachek became the dean of the Washburn University School of Business. In 2002, she was named president and CEO of the Washburn University Alumni Association and Foundation, then the Washburn Endowment Association. She served in that role for 15 years, all while continuing to teach accounting. She helped grow the Foundation substantially by running the first-ever comprehensive fundraising campaign for the University – work that raised more than $140 million to benefit all areas of Washburn. She also oversaw the merging of Washburn’s endowment and fundraising operations with the Washburn Alumni Association to create one organization dedicated to engaging alumni and friends with Washburn.

“We were able to create a philanthropic culture among our alumni and on campus,” Mazachek said. “It was important because we tied it all back to students, scholarships, creating the best learning environment and hiring the very best faculty. That’s the magic that makes Washburn what it is.”

In 2016, Mazachek was named interim and then permanent vice president for academic affairs.

“I have enjoyed working with students, faculty, staff, alumni, donors and the community, to make a difference for the future, to create wonderful lives, to enhance the environment in which we live, and to give back to the community. It's been a true honor," Mazachek said.

Mazachek and her husband, Keith Mazacheck, a senior lecturer in Washburn’s engineering transfer program and faculty member for 23 years, plan to relocate to Wichita Falls, Texas, in late May.