NEWS RELEASE

June 17, 2008

DR. NANCY KLENIEWSKI APPOINTED AS PRESIDENT OF SUNY-ONEONTA

      ONEONTA, N.Y. -- The SUNY Board of Trustees today appointed Dr. Nancy Kleniewski, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Bridgewater State College in Massachusetts, as the seventh President of the SUNY College at Oneonta.  Dr. Kleniewski will replace President Alan B. Donovan, who will retire this summer.

      Dr. Kleniewski brings a wealth of experience to SUNY-Oneonta from her previous positions.  At Bridgewater State, where she has worked since 2002, she oversees all academic services including libraries, admissions, financial aid, and learning support; manages nine academic research/outreach centers in a public college of 9,900 students, 675 faculty and staff; administers an annual budget of $35 million; works with faculty to develop, review, and enhance academic programs and policies; coordinates institutional planning, assessment, and enrollment management; and provides direction for faculty development, evaluation, and grants and sponsored projects.

      Before joining Bridgewater State, Dr. Kleniewski served from 1996 to 2002 as Dean of Fine Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences and Professor of Sociology at the University of Massachusetts--Lowell.

      Dr. Kleniewski worked at SUNY-Geneseo from 1981 to 1996, where she held positions as Executive Assistant to the President, Chair of the Sociology Department, Associate Dean of the College, Coordinator of Urban Studies, and Professor.  She received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching while she was a faculty member at SUNY-Geneseo.

      Dr. Kleniewski is the author or co-author of nine books and many scholarly articles.  She has served on the editorial boards of the “Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare,” “Journal of Urban Affairs,” “Research in Social Policy,” and “Urban Affairs Review.”

      Dr. Kleniewski has shown a commitment to community service throughout her career, including volunteer leadership positions with the United Way of Greater Plymouth County, City of Lowell Community Schools Program, Center City Committee of Lowell, Community Outreach Partnership Center of Lowell, Greater Lowell Community Foundation, Lowell Office of Cultural Affairs, Lowell Transitional Living Center, Mental Health Association in Livingston County, Merrimack Repertory Theatre, and Metro‑Act of Rochester.

      Dr. Kleniewski holds a Ph.D. and master’s degree in sociology from Temple University and a bachelor’s degree in sociology and behavioral sciences from Emmanuel College.  She has also completed the Millennium Leadership Initiative Institute of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, the Institute for Educational Management at Harvard University, and the Massachusetts Higher Education Executive Leadership Institute.

      Dr. Kleniewski will assume the presidency of the College at Oneonta effective July 14.