Board of Trustees Appoints Dr. Donald P. Zingale President of SUNY Cobleskill

Albany - The SUNY Board of Trustees today appointed Dr. Donald P. Zingale as the next president of SUNY Cobleskill, effective May 1, 2008, at a salary of $185,000. Earlier this month, Dr. Zingale was nominated for the post by SUNY Interim Chancellor Dr. John B. Clark.

Since June 2004, Donald P. Zingale, has served as the vice president for academic affairs at The California Maritime Academy, a campus of the California State University System that offers bachelor’s degrees in specialized fields such as facilities engineering technology, global studies and maritime affairs, marine engineering technology, and marine transportation. Previously, Dr. Zingale was the founding dean of the College of Health & Human Services at San Francisco State University.

“A native son of New York, Donald Zingale’s strong record of accomplishment at the California State University System is very impressive.  We now welcome him back home confident in his ability to effectively lead the students, faculty and staff of SUNY Cobleskill to higher levels of academic achievement and excellence,” said SUNY Board of Trustees Chairman Carl T. Hayden.

“Dr. Zingale brings an expansive portfolio to SUNY as an administrator, a mentor and a leader,” said Interim Chancellor Clark. “His leadership at California Maritime Academy as well as his previous experience at universities in California will serve the SUNY System and the Cobleskill campus very well. I would like to thank Chairman Paul Berard and the rest of the search committee for their service and this excellent recommendation, and I commend the Board for finalizing this appointment.”

Dr. Zingale said, "SUNY Cobleskill is a harmonic convergence of opportunity, including enhanced baccalaureate curricula, a leading edge emphasis on experiential education, and an expansion in sponsored projects activity. I am honored to have been chosen to guide the campus in these endeavors as it approaches its 100th anniversary."

Interim Chancellor Clark also thanked Dr. Anne Myers, who has been serving as officer in charge at SUNY Cobleskill, since previous president Dr. Thomas Haas left the campus to become president of Grand Valley University in Grand Rapids, MI, in 2006.

Prior to nominating Dr. Zingale, Interim Chancellor Clark received three recommended finalists from the College Council, which had enlisted a search committee. The search committee was made up of representatives of the faculty, administration, students and the college council.  

While at the California Maritime Academy, Dr. Zingale:

• Served during a time of unprecedented growth in enrollment - well over 40 percent in the last 5 years;
• Oversaw the expansion of academic programs, including business and global studies and maritime affairs;
• Helped lay the groundwork for the school’s first Masters-level program in global supply chain security; and
• Initiated the school’s first academic conference on International Maritime Education – Teaching and Learning in the Maritime Environment.

Previous administrative posts held by Dr. Zingale also include the deanship of California State University, Los Angeles’ College of Health & Human Services and an associate vice presidency for research & graduate studies at California State University, Sacramento, where he was also a faculty member and associate dean in its School of Health & Human Services.

Dr. Zingale’s graduate training included kinesiology and social work. Colleagues say that this diversity has provided him with a unique and effective style of hearing, serving, motivating and guiding groups as well as individuals. Known as a steward leader and advocate for integrated scholarship, Dr. Zingale’s entrepreneurial and proactive approach to academe is widely respected for informing, empowering and engaging faculty and staff in collectively responsible ways.

Dr. Zingale has an M.S.W. in Social Work (Mental Health) from California State University, Sacramento; a Ph.D. in Physical Education from The Ohio State University (Columbus); and an M.S. in Physical Education from the University of Massachusetts (Amherst). A native New Yorker, Dr. Zingale received his B.S. in Physical Education from Brooklyn College.

With 2,500 students, SUNY Cobleskill is large enough to offer a wide range of programs and activities, yet small enough to allow for personalized attention from faculty and staff.  Founded in 1916, SUNY Cobleskill is one of the nation's oldest and best colleges of agriculture and technology.

The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive university system in the United States, educating more than 427,000 students in 7,669 degree and certificate programs on 64 campuses. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunity, visit www.suny.edu.

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