sentences:  Dedmon became president of Radford University on March 20, 1972, and served for more than twenty years, during which time the University experienced rapid growth and a major transition from a small women's college to a co-ed institution, before reaching university status in 1979.The enrollment tripled during his tenure.Dedmon spent much of the early 1990s away from Radford University on sabbatical in Hawaii and later on medical leave during a lengthy recovery from a ruptured spleen.