Leadership killed College of Saint Rose

Like many, I am heartbroken that my beloved alma mater will cease operations. I am angered by the excuses offered by Saint Rose President Marcia White, but it wasn’t the enrollment cliff or pandemic that caused the college's demise, it was years of poor leadership.

After President Mark Sullivan retired, unsteady leadership put the college on an unstable trajectory. David Szczerbacki left as president after a year. Then, the two most recent presidents lacked an understanding of the college, its history and the importance of its alumni. In 2014 and within six short years, President Carolyn Stefanco, in attempts to save money, cut programs for which Saint Rose had garnered a respected reputation. Her actions alienated faculty, students and alumni.

After Stefanco’s resignation in 2020 (and a nearly $1.5 million payout), White, a leader known locally for her financial prowess but no true experience as an administrator in higher education, led the school as the multimilliondollar deficit ballooned. Although she was heralded for leading SPAC back from financial disaster, higher education is a dynamic, even volatile environment, one White had little experience in navigating.

Although the college’s trustees seemed to jump at the next new shiny savior, it seems as though Stefanco and White lacked the leadership skills necessary to envision Saint Rose’s future. It took about a tenth of the time to destroy the college after more than a century of strength. Sadly, this may be the college’s tragic, yet most important, lesson to us all.

Heath Boice-Pardee

Rochester The writer spent 30 years

as an administrator in higher education and works

for a professional development company for higher education.