Helping Students and Honoring Bernie and Greta Sliger

Sliger Presidential Scholarship

Help us further perpetuate Bernie and Greta Sliger's rich legacy by contributing to the Bernard F. & Greta Sliger Presidential Scholarship. The scholarship benefits gifted undergraduate students in the Honors Program, helping them to become transformative leaders both at Florida State and after they graduate.

Please visit http://presidentialscholars.fsu.edu/ if you would like to learn more about the Presidential Scholars Program.

Bernard F. Sliger, President: 1976-1991

Bernie Sliger, a highly regarded economist, served as president of The Florida State University from 1977 to 1991 after four years as the university's executive vice president and chief academic officer. Sliger provided forward-thinking leadership during a long period of unprecedented growth for the university.

During Sliger's tenure, student enrollment increased by nearly one-third, the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory was awarded to the university, and the institution acquired three supercomputers.

Establishment of the FAMU/FSU College of Engineering was high on his list of major achievements, as was acquisition of the Panama City Campus. In addition, Florida State rose to the pinnacle of intercollegiate athletics and joined the Atlantic Coast Conference; funding was approved for the multimillion-dollar University Center; and the idea for the College of Medicine was first explored.

Ruth Margareta “Greta” Taube Sliger, wife of President Bernie Sliger

Ruth Margareta “Greta” Taube Sliger (b. 1924) was raised in Newberry, Michigan. She attended Cleary University and Eastern Michigan University. She and Bernie Sliger married in 1945. In 1978 the Sligers moved into the President’s House (now the Pearl Tyner Alumni Welcome Center) with their two teenagers, Greta Lee and Sten, and lived there longer than any other first family.