Gary Russi served as president of Oakland University for 18 years, establishing it as a premier healthcare institution through building projects like the Human Health Building. Since 1957, Oakland University has grown to be a pillar of the Michigan State University network. It recently unveiled a new 151-foot carillon tower called the Elliot Tower, developed with support from Hugh and Nancy Elliot and featuring 49 bells from a Dutch foundry established in 1660. The tower enhances the campus with a water fountain and garden area and will offer musical performances and education.

2.  Prior to his retirement in 2013, Gary Russi
served as president of Oakland University
for 18 years, managing more than 3,000
faculty members and an annual budget
exceeding $300 million. In his efforts to
establish Oakland University as a premier
healthcare institution in Southeast
Michigan, Gary Russi played a major role in
the planning and construction of various
buildings, including the state-of-the-art
Human Health Building.

3.  Since its establishment in 1957, Oakland
University has grown into a pillar of the
Michigan State University network, and most
recently it unveiled a brand new addition to its
1,443-acre campus: the Elliot Tower.
Developed with the generous support of Hugh
and Nancy Elliot, the 151-foot carillon tower
features 49 bells cast by Royal Bellfoundry Petit
& Fritsen, a bell manufacturer founded in the
Netherlands in 1660. The university’s Elliot Tower
marks the fourth carillon tower on a Michigan
State University campus and arguably the most
beautiful structure on the OU campus.

4.  The tower is complemented by a water
fountain and a landscaped garden.
Local carillonneur Dennis Curry will
conduct a regular sounding schedule
and establish an educational program
introducing the carillon to students in
OU’s Department of Music.