Kim Anderson

What made you want to come to Lewis & Clark?

It was the right distance from home with excellent education credentials and the right size student body.

What have you been doing since graduation?

Fourteen years in the family glass business ending by developing six new warehouses in new locations to grow the business. Seven years in commercial real estate brokerage practicing what I’d learned in my previous glass career. After a call to ministry, I returned to the glass business to work six and a half years in sales and estimating while I attended school in the evenings and weekends to earn my master of divinity degree. I was hired to run the Fuller Seminary Northwest Regional Campus where I got my degree. I retired from that position in 2014 after sixteen years. In retirement I give back to my community through my work in the Lake Forest Park Rotary Club, and serve as a commissioner on the Lake Forest Park Civil Service Commission.

How did Lewis & Clark prepare you for your career?

It taught me to create balance in my life, how to write effectively, communicate, and understand people who were diverse and part of my new community.

What would you say is the most important thing you learned at Lewis & Clark?

It taught me to be curious and to ask the right questions.

What’s your favorite part or most memorable experience of serving on the Board of Alumni?

Working with talented board members and finding creative ways to connect with alumni.

How do you stay connected to Lewis & Clark as an alum?

I have a family member who lives in Lake Oswego whom I visit. I often stop by and walk around the campus. I have also increased my giving to the school since retiring, and I keep in touch with close friends made at L&C and encourage them to have mini-reunions when we can.

Have you been to Alumni Weekend or other programming, like Homecoming, etc.? What did you enjoy about the event(s)?

I’ve been to both Alumni Weekend and Homecoming. I enjoyed checking in with the college and keeping up with its strategic planning for the future.

How do you encourage other alumni to give back to the college?

By encouraging them to stay connected to the college and continue their relationship with the school.

How do you describe the liberal arts?

Rather than spending four years on a single form of study, a liberal arts degree introduces one to a diversity of topics and study, which in turn helps one to learn and shape skills in creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and how to communicate effectively.

Where did you find your community on campus?

Kim Anderson BS ’70 and the 1968 Lambda Phi Epsilon Intramural Football team.I started out my first year as a business major, but in taking a psychology elective, I became fascinated with human behavior and I soon switched majors to behavioral psychology. In addition, I was a resident advisor and head resident advisor in Forest Hall. Residence halls became my community and a laboratory to observe and figure out human behavior. The lessons I learned I carried into my three professions and my work in the community. Lewis & Clark served me well in preparing me for life.