Norm Parsons was inducted into the UM Sports Hall of Fame last year.

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (February 21, 2014) — Norman C. Parsons Jr., executive director of the Patti and Allan Herbert Wellness Center and Miller School of Medicine Wellness Center, will retire in October after serving the Division of Student Affairs with dedication, distinction, and an unwavering commitment to the health and well-being of students, faculty, staff, and alumni for 43 years.

As executive director, Parsons provided the leadership to build the Herbert Wellness Center in 1996 and the subsequent addition that opened in 2011.

He has held a number of other significant positions at UM, including coach of the 1977 and 1978 National Champion Women’s Golf Teams, coach of the Men’s Golf Teams from 1980-1988, chair of the Student Publications Committee since 1985, and lead fundraiser for the Division of Student Affairs since 2004. He is a member of Iron Arrow and served as the honor society’s advisor from 1995 to 2009. Last fall, he also assumed responsibility for the Miller School of Medicine Wellness Center.

Over the past 43 years, his leadership has included not only the building of the Herbert Wellness Center, but the expansion of the intramural program and the award-winning Sports Club Program that features 48 clubs and numerous exercise class offerings. Through his vision for the Herbert Wellness Center, he ensured that students, staff, faculty, and alumni had access to a variety of wellness educational programming, thereby serving to instill them with the tools to strive toward a lifetime of wellness.

“Norm has been a transformational leader, touching the lives of countless students, staff, faculty, and alumni throughout his tenure,” said Patricia A. Whitely, vice president for student affairs. “The Herbert Wellness Center is a testament to his vision, resolve, and positive attitude. He has educated the UM community about the importance of wellness over four decades. He has served UM with grace and care.”

Parsons was inducted into the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame in 2013 and received the Iron Arrow Bowman Foster Ashe Honor in 2010, the James W. McLamore Outstanding Service Award in 2009, the Women’s Commission May Brunson Award in 2008, and the University of Miami Alumni Association “Inside Out Award” in 1996. Most recently, in 2013, he was the inaugural recipient of the Norman C. Parsons, Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award established by Student Government.

The University will begin a national search for his successor immediately.