On Feb. 8, 2024, Adrian College lost a giant contributor to its campus culture when retired English professor Don Kleinsmith passed away. Professor Kleinsmith worked at Adrian College for 45 years. In that time, beginning in 1970 when he joined the Student Dean’s staff, Kleinsmith was a professor of English, journalism, communications, and business, in addition to advising the Theta Chi fraternity, student government, the Order of Omega and the Mortar Board senior honors society, for which he was named Advisor of the Year in 1998. He served as the voice of Adrian College sports, calling play-by-play for the Bulldog basketball team, football team, and more. In 1996, he was honored with the College’s Exemplary Teaching Award. He was also the fourth inductee into the Adrian College Faculty Hall of Fame.

Born in Monroe, MI, Professor Kleinsmith received a Bachelor’s Degree in English And Master’s of Education Degree from Eastern Michigan University. He taught for a total of 60 years, starting at Western High School in Anaheim, California, and then moving to Eastern Michigan University, where he served as Director of Student Activities. Finally, in 1970, he settled down at Adrian College. 

Adrian College Vice President of Development Jim Mahony, who was a student of Professor Kleinsmith in the 1990s, says that his Business & Professional Communications class “should have been required.”

“I still think about a lot of the things he taught,” Mahony expressed.“What side of your lapel should your name tag go on, the art of writing a thank-you note, looking someone in the eye when you’re talking to them, all the things that we as students needed to think about as we became young professionals in the world.”

Many alumni of Adrian College remember Professor Kleinsmith for his witty sense of humor, strong faith, and as a loyal family man.

“When Don announced that he was going to retire as an advisor of Theta Chi, we wanted to create a scholarship in his honor. He said okay, but only if you put my wife Louise’s name on it, too,” Mahony remembers.

“Don Kleinsmith wasn’t just a teacher;” remembers former student Beth Heiss, “we prayed together, and he showed up during life’s hardest moments.”

Kleinsmith was also a community columnist for the Lenawee Telegram newspaper, writing about reflections on his incredible life. In one such column, he wrote about how he gave his brother a sense of positivity through a debilitating illness, a testament to the way Professor Kleinsmith viewed life.

After retiring from Adrian College, the Board of Trustees decided that there was no better place on campus to name after Professor Kleinsmith than the Writing Center, which provides free English tutoring services to Adrian College students and is located in the Caine Student Center. 

“Professor Don Kleinsmith had been a member of the English Department for years before I came on board in 2011,” remembers Don Kleinsmith Writing Center Director and Professor of English Bethany Shepherd. “He was particularly good at developing and maintaining a wide ranging social network with class after class of graduating students—both English majors and athletes. He loved sharing stories about the years he spent calling games for Adrian College athletics and in that way he continued to be a perfect fit for a school that intentionally invests in student athletes. During the years we taught in the department together, I observed that students were very drawn to him and enjoyed talking with him outside of class. His course on Literature and Writing was popular and he particularly enjoyed helping students prepare resumes and letters of recommendation as they prepared to enter the job market.”

The College World interviewed Professor Kleinsmith in 1992, asking the Professor what he would want his epitaph to be.

“He loved to teach,” Professor Kleinsmith said. “I think that’s direct and concise, and very appropriate.”