Newman University has named Aaron Ryder as its new director of facilities, bringing to campus a 20-year U.S. Air Force career that included managing operations across 1,200 buildings, leading teams of more than 300 personnel and overseeing budgets as large as $43 million.
Ryder, who retired from the Air Force and holds both a master of business administration from Liberty University and a project management professional certification, said he was not actively searching for work when the Newman position surfaced on LinkedIn — but something told him to apply.
“I was trying to find the right fit,” Ryder said. “More so than finding another job, a place where I could grow roots and have a second career.”
What he found in the interview process sealed it. Sitting across from professors, athletic department staff and administrators, Ryder said the collaborative approach stood out immediately.
“Here at Newman, it’s a team sport,” he said. “It’s everybody has a say in who we work with and work around.”
A wealth of experience
Ryder’s Air Force career took him across the country and overseas, with assignments in Florida, Texas, Virginia and even South Korea. His most recent posting was as civil engineering division superintendent at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, where he managed a $12 billion facilities portfolio across 35 installations.
Despite those postings, Wichita became home. When orders arrived in 2022 sending him to South Korea, his family — wife Haley, who works in cybersecurity at McConnell Air Force Base, and their two children, who attend school in Andover — stayed. As soon as he could retire, he came back.
“The people are great here in Wichita, and it’s exactly where we want to raise a family and be a part of the community,” Ryder said.
That same word — community — is what he says drew him to Newman specifically.
“I know the word community gets put out a lot for Newman, and I think it’s the perfect word to describe it,” he said. “When you’re looking for a new career, you’re looking for a place where you can see yourself in that community.”
His first months on the job, he said, will be defined by listening. Buildings like Sacred Heart, which dates to 1933, represent layers of history he wants to understand before making decisions.
“Being the new guy, I want to learn how we evolved to where we’re at now from a facilities maintenance and construction and functionality piece,” Ryder said. “That way, we can make educated and logic-based decisions on where we deploy our resources.”
Making a difference at Newman
Ryder said two decades of working across cultures and departments taught him the value of a shared language — a skill he plans to carry into conversations with faculty, students and administrators at Newman.
Ryder’s message to the campus community is straightforward: “Speak up.”
“The facilities team — we’re here to help any way that we can,” he said. “Don’t suffer in silence. Just bring it to our attention and we’ll get on it right away.”
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