New leadership has been appointed to head the State University at New York (SUNY) system-and not a minute too soon. This transition comes two years after former Chancellor John Ryan's resignation, and in the midst of a historic budget crisis that will cost the system approximately $210 million dollars in cuts.
Nancy L. Zimpher, the president of the University of Cincinnati since 2003, will replace Ryan as the new SUNY chancellor.
The announcement that named Zimpher as the 12th chancellor of SUNY, who was voted in unanimously by the SUNY Board of Trustees, was made on Tuesday. The appointment will take effect in June of this year.
Until then, Zimpher plans to make her rounds to all 64 campuses that compose the SUNY system to meet with university presidents and senior staffs, according to a SUNY board press release.
In backing the Board of Trustees' decision, Gov. David A. Paterson cited Zimpher's trailblazer qualities throughout her career, including raising admissions standards, increasing enrollment, reinforcing research and business tactics at the universities she has headed.
"She was the first woman to serve as president of the University of Cincinnati, and she will also be the first woman to serve as SUNY chancellor. We are thrilled to welcome her to New York, where we know she will continue to realize the vision and full potential of our university system," Paterson said in a press release.
Zimpher's potential came across during her stay at the University of Cincinnati, where she transformed academia for the better and proved herself a 'tough leader,' according to Paterson.
Marsha S. Henderson, vice president for External Affairs, states that Zimpher was a great candidate for the job who has a broad understanding of UB goals in hand with SUNY-wide objectives.
"From a UB perspective, Chancellor Zimpher comes into her new role with a strong understanding of research universities and that is good [for] UB. She led a process in her past role that has some similarities to UB2020, so we hope she will be supportive of our vision for UB," Henderson said.
In September, President John B. Simpson predicted in his third annual community address, called 'Believe,' that cuts to the university will amount to $20 million, which would hinder the vision that is UB2020.
"These cuts, without question, will affect every aspect of state government. And because SUNY is part of state government in New York, our public colleges and universities will be affected. These cuts will take much-needed funds away from UB, and from our sister institutions Buffalo State College and Erie and Niagara County Community Colleges," Simpson said in 'Believe.'
Simpson, who has been fighting the once-proposed budget cuts since September, supports the appointment of Zimpher in troubled times to reinforce the SUNY system.
"In Nancy Zimpher, we will have a chancellor who recognizes the critical role that public higher education-and particularly our research universities-play in building a knowledge-based economy, and who has the experience and acumen to advance this role in significant ways," Simpson said in a statement. "I look forward to working with her, and with my SUNY colleagues across the state, to pursue this vision."
Paterson hopes to lay down a new base for the SUNY system with Zimpher's help.
"Sixty years later, we must come together to lay a new foundation - to start a new era for SUNY. As we work to rebuild New York's economy, we must remember that, in the twenty-first century, jobs will be created where ideas are created. Therefore, if we are to return to prosperity, higher education must be at the center of our agenda," Paterson said in a press release concerning Zimpher's appointment.
Zimpher will be in charge of an annual all-funds budget in excess of $10 billion, and working with an institute that is comprised of .5 million students, faculty and staff, according to David Henahan, director of media relations with SUNY.
"The chancellor of the SUNY system is the chief executive officer for the state university system. It's the largest and most complex comprehensive system of public higher education in the nation," Henahan said.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
