October 24, 2022
Founded in 1970, the Academy promotes the advancement of private higher education in Indiana through the support of Independent Colleges of Indiana (ICI) and its member institutions.
Members of the Indiana Academy are selected by its Board of Regents from nominations submitted by members of the Indiana Academy or presidents of ICI member institutions.
In a video introduction, Trine University President Earl D. Brooks II, Ph.D., said the university nominated Findlay because of his strong support for higher education.
“David has been a member of leadership boards at three of our ICI member institutions, including his current service on the Trine University Board of Trustees,” Brooks said. “He’s also provided leadership and support to other nonprofits, as well as regional and statewide business organizations.”
Findlay serves as president and chief executive officer of Lakeland Financial Corporation and Lake City Bank, headquartered in Warsaw, Indiana. Lakeland Financial Corporation is a publicly traded (NASDAQ Global Select/LKFN) bank holding company with total assets of $6.6 billion and 52 offices located throughout Northern and Central Indiana.
He serves on the board of directors for Parkview Health, a Fort Wayne healthcare system that collaborates on health professions programs with several ICI member institutions including Huntington University, Manchester University, University of Saint Francis and Trine University.
“I’ve been very proud to have been associated with the DePauw universities and the Trine universities of the world,” he said. “They make Indiana a better place for us as alumni of those schools, for employers of people coming from those schools, and for bringing people into our communities that really create a value.”
The other 2022 inductees to the Indiana Academy were D. Wade Clapp, MD, distinguished professor and chair of the Department of Pediatrics, IU School of Medicine; David L. Johnson, president and chief executive officer, Central Indiana Corporate Partnership, Inc.; and Niles L. Noblitt, chairman of the board (retired), Biomet.
The Indiana Academy honorees are recognized annually for lifetimes of achievement and contribution to the state of Indiana. Members of the Academy demonstrate exceptional leadership in philanthropy, business, public service, advancement of the sciences, the arts, literature, culture and scholarship in connection with Indiana’s independent non-profit colleges and universities.
“We were delighted to honor the 2022 class of inductees at a special gala in Indianapolis,” said Kurt D. Dykstra, president and CEO of Independent Colleges of Indiana. “This is an incredible group of leaders, and we’re grateful to each for their impact upon our campus communities and upon the State of Indiana.”
During the event, Deborah J. Daniels, JD, chair of the Indiana Academy Board of Regents and partner at Krieg DeVault LLP, announced on behalf of the Regents their financial support of the ICI Leadership Academy. This year-long program was launched in 2020 and specializes in the talent development needs of faculty and staff members of private college campuses.
“In order to truly live the Indiana Academy’s mission, we feel it’s important to help develop the future leaders of these ICI institutions,” said Daniels. “We think the best investment we can make is in those leaders of tomorrow.”
About the Indiana Academy
Modeled after the French Academy, the Indiana Academy was established in 1970 by the Independent Colleges of Indiana to recognize individual leadership, achievement, and philanthropy designed to promote the advancement of the state, as well as its independent sector of higher education.
About Independent Colleges of Indiana
Independent Colleges of Indiana serves as the collective voice for the state’s 29 private, non-profit colleges and universities. ICI institutions employ over 22,000 Hoosiers and generate a total local economic impact of over $5 billion annually. Students at ICI colleges have Indiana’s highest four-year, on-time graduation rates, and ICI institutions produce 30 percent of Indiana’s bachelor’s degrees while enrolling 20 percent of its undergraduates.
Dakota Carter, a junior mechanical engineering major at Trine, has received the David Laine scholarship from the North American Die Casting Association for two consecutive years.
Hayden Smith, left, and Kyle Stoller, both seniors majoring in mechanical engineering at Trine University, pour molten iron into carved pumpkins and other gourds leftover from Halloween in the university’s Foundry Lab on Tuesday, Nov. 5.
Lou Ann Homan believes everything she has done in her life — teaching, writing, performing — has led to her current role as director of Trine University Theatre.