He was MSU’s 12th president from 1992 to 2004. During his tenure, MSU opened regional campuses in Jackson and Mt. Sterling, offered the state’s first online degree program, converted its football program to non-scholarship, created the Kentucky Folk Art Center, and the University endowment rose to almost $20 million. The most recognized contribution would be the establishment of a space science degree and the naming of the academic component as the Ronald G. Eaglin Space Science Center in the College of Science and Technology. He and his wife, Bonnie, were awarded honorary degrees in 2004.