SUNY Board of Trustees Appoints Dr. Virginia Schaefer Horvath as President of SUNY Fredonia

Brockport – The State University of New York Board of Trustees today unanimously appointed Dr. Virginia Schaefer Horvath as president of SUNY Fredonia, effective July 1, 2012. With this appointment, Dr. Horvath becomes the first female president in college history.

“As vice president for academic affairs at SUNY Fredonia for the past seven years, Dr. Horvath will bring great insight, knowledge, and leadership to the presidential post,” said SUNY Board Chairman H. Carl McCall. “We are pleased that she has agreed to serve as the first female president of SUNY Fredonia and look forward to working more closely with her in the future.”

“Dr. Horvath’s proven commitment to improving higher education in Western New York will serve her well in her new role as president of SUNY Fredonia,” said SUNY Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher. “She has an impressive legacy of leadership that I am confident she will continue to build upon at the college, and I know she will exceed the expectations of students, faculty, staff, and alumni alike.”

“There are many challenges right now in higher education, but SUNY Fredonia is in a good position to address those and to be known even more widely for our student success and campus environment,” Horvath said. “I am honored to have been recommended by the Fredonia search committee and selected by the Chancellor and Board of Trustees, and I look forward to serving the students, faculty, staff and community as president.”

Dr. Horvath was chosen and endorsed out of a pool of more than 50 candidates and five finalists by a 15-member search committee before being recommended for the position last week by Chancellor Zimpher.  Her selection concludes a national search aided by R. H. Perry & Associates, which began in September 2011 and drew candidates from across the U.S.

About Dr. Virginia Schaefer Horvath

As vice president for academic affairs since 2005, Dr. Horvath has served as the chief academic officer and the second-highest ranking official at SUNY Fredonia for the past seven years, making her uniquely aware of the campus’ strengths and recent successes as well as its opportunities for growth and improvement.

A Western New York native, Horvath was born and raised in Amherst, N.Y. She is a SUNY graduate, having earned a bachelor of arts in English from the University at Buffalo before continuing on to Kent State University for both a master’s and Ph.D., also in English. She joined the faculty at Kent State in 1985 and became dean of academic and student services for the regional campuses, a position she held from 2001 to 2005. Even as a full-time administrator at Kent State and SUNY Fredonia, Horvath has continued to teach undergraduate courses on a regular basis.

The 54-year-old Horvath’s scholarship includes more than a dozen critical articles and books, in addition to numerous poems and reviews. She has presented and given workshops at more than 70 regional, national, and international conferences. Her service to her profession and to her current and previous campuses is also well known.

About the State University of New York

The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive university system in the United States, educating more than 465,000 students in more than 7,500 degree and certificate programs on 64 campuses with more than 3 million alumni around the globe. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunity, visit www.suny.edu.