Geoffrey Gamble
| Geoffrey Gamble | |
|---|---|
| 11th President of Montana State University |
|
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In office December 1, 2000 – December 22, 2009 |
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| Preceded by | Michael P. Malone |
| Succeeded by | Waded Cruzado |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1942 (age 74–75) Fresno, California, United States |
| Spouse(s) | Patricia Moneyhan Gamble |
| Alma mater |
California State University, Fresno University of California, Berkeley |
| Profession | Professor of Linguistics |
| Salary | $133,000 a year (in 2000) |
| Website | www.montana.edu |
Geoffrey Gamble (born 1942) is an American linguist who served from 2000 to 2009 as the 11th president of Montana State University.
Gamble was born in 1942 and raised on a farm near Fresno, California. His father was a cotton farmer with a seventh grade education who was dismissive of educational achievement. A veteran of World War II, Gamble's father wanted his son to become a boxer. His mother was a high school dropout (although she received her GED diploma later in life). The Gamble family was somewhat poor, and both boys and girls in the family were taught to cook, sew, and repair automobiles in order to be self-sufficient.
Gamble, however, valued education. He graduated from Fresno High School and attended Fresno State College (now California State University, Fresno), where he played football for a year. He quit playing after receiving such poor grades that he was nearly forced to leave school. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in English language and literature in 1965. He was the first and only person in his family to earn a college degree.
After college, Gamble took up a lucrative career selling insurance. During his seven years in the insurance industry, he was promoted to manager. He was in his early 30s when he started teaching a night class to aspiring insurance agents, and realized that he really wanted to teach.
Gamble enrolled again at Fresno State, and began to pursue a degree in law. But he switched to linguistics, and received a master's degree in 1971. By this time, Gamble had married and had children. He continued with his education and obtained a Ph.D. in linguistics from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1975. His specialty was Native American languages.
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