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UNH Pays Tribute to DeNardis at Scholarship Ball
West Haven, CT— He has been president of the university for 13 years, almost twice as long as most college presidents. He was elected to the Connecticut State Senate, serving as deputy majority leader and chairing the Finance Committee. He represented the Third Congressional District in the Congress for two years. He played a key human services legislation role during the administration of President Ronald Reagan. Now, for his service to the state, nation, and the university, Dr. Lawrence J. DeNardis will be honored by a special tribute during the UNH Alumni Association’s 21st annual Scholarship Ball.
The ball, whose proceeds support the Endowed Scholarship Fund, was held at the Omni New Haven Hotel, Saturday April 24. Joining DeNardis as honorees were Distinguished Alumni Award winners Michael Toner, EMBA ’82, executive vice president of General Dynamics, and U.S. Coast Guard vice commandant, Admiral Tom Collins, MBA ’76, and five students whose higher education has been assisted by the Endowed Scholarship Fund.
The theme of the ball was “Real-Life Learning–Real-Life Leaders.”
Dr. DeNardis was named UNH president in 1991. He is former Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Connecticut Conference of Independent Colleges (CCIC) and currently chairs the Tweed-New Haven Regional Airport Authority. In 2001, he was appointed by President George W. Bush to the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI), a group that oversees the accreditation of institutions and associations in higher education.
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Following five terms in the Connecticut State Senate beginning in 1971, he represented the 3rd District in the U.S. House of Representatives for one term and, for two years during the Reagan administration, was acting assistant secretary for legislation for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Also, he served the Board of Regents of the National Library of Medicine for four years, having been appointed by President George H. W. Bush.
Immediately prior to becoming president of the University of New Haven, Dr. DeNardis served as President and CEO of the Connecticut Policy and Economic Council and was appointed by former Governor Lowell P. Weicker as Chair of the Connecticut Board of Governors of Higher Education (1991).
His academic experience includes 16 years as Associate Professor and Chairman of Political Science at Albertus Magnus College, Hamden, CT; Visiting Professor of Government at Connecticut College, New London, CT; Guest Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars of the Smithsonian Institution, Washington; seminar instructor at Yale University; and member of the UNH adjunct faculty. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the College of the Holy Cross, and Master’s and Doctoral degrees in Government from New York University.
Dr. DeNardis is a board member of the American Council, a member of the NCAA Division II President’s Council, and trustee of the Yale School of Medicine Library. Formerly, he was a director of the Hospital of St. Raphael, the Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce, and the United Way of Greater New Haven.
He is a U.S. Navy veteran, honorably discharged as a Lieutenant.
He is married to the former Mary Lou White. Residents of the Mt. Carmel section of Hamden, they are the parents of four adult children.
Dr. DeNardis will become president emeritus of the university July 1. Dr. Steven Kaplan, chancellor of the University of Virginia at Wise, has been named to succeed him.
Dr. DeNardis had these words on his accomplishments during his presidency.
Academic Leadership and Entrepreneurship
Under my leadership, the University has become a complex institution with a liberal arts-based program for residential students of mostly traditional age; a set of professional and graduate programs in the applied fields, both inside and outside the liberal arts, which serve a mixture of local, regional, national and international students; and a set of programs for nontraditional students, including degrees, continuing education courses and non-degree activities, typically delivered on evenings and weekends serving the local market.
The institution began with programs in business, pre-engineering and the liberal arts in 1920. The University now has four schools and a college: the College of Arts and Sciences, School of Business, School of Engineering & Applied Science, School of Public Safety & Professional Studies, and the School of Hospitality & Tourism. The schools offer 80 undergraduate and 30 graduate degree programs accredited by regional, state and several specialized accrediting organizations. The University’s curriculum, though traditional, has many niche programs of national and international standing.
During the current academic year 2003-034, the University has 4,500 students of whom 2,000 are full-time undergraduate; 630 are part-time undergraduate; and nearly 1,800 are enrolled in graduate programs. Others are enrolled in professional certificate and continuing education programs.
As a result of our entrepreneurship, we have developed a diverse student body from 30 states and 70 countries on five continents. In addition to our main campus in West Haven, Connecticut and a the UNH/Southeastern Graduate Center New London, during the past ten years we have developed satellites for selected programs in Stamford, Stratford, Waterbury Newington and Shelton, Connecticut, (Executive MBA, Master of Science in Engineering Management, MBA and MS in Education) and satellites in four California settings (MS in Human Nutrition, MS in Forensic Science, and MS in National Security, the first such program in the country). The University has also conducted programs in Cyprus (MBA) and Israel (BS in Air Transportation Management) during my tenure and has just (2004) launched an MBA program in China. Our first class in Athens Greece, graduated in 2002 with Master of Science degrees in Industrial & Organizational Psychology.
Some major achievements of our academic programs are:
1. In 2001, the University was reaccredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) for a new period of ten years. This is the first time since the institution was first accredited in 1966 that our reaccredidation was achieved without conditions or reservations (a strong, clean reaccredidation).
2. The School of Engineering and Applied Science carries national accreditation by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc. (ABET) in five degree programs (chemical, civil, electrical, industrial and mechanical). These programs were fully reaccredited in 2000. The Chemical Engineering program has been cited by U.S. News & World Report as one of the five best in the country.
3. In the School of Engineering and Applied Science, the BS in computer science earned accreditation in 2000 from the Computer Science Accreditation Board (CSAB). This is a new, first-time accreditation.
4. The School of Business is pursuing national accreditation with the International Association for Management Education (AACSB).
5. The Executive MBA program is Connecticut’s oldest and largest in terms of graduates—nearly 1500, more than 250 of whom are CEOs of their organizations. It celebrated its 25TH anniversary in 2000 and is stronger than ever.
6. The Management of Sports Industries program (undergraduate) in 1998 was among the first ten programs of its kind accredited in the United States by the North American Society for Sport Management. Also, UNH is one of the few universities in the nation that offers the major within its School of Business.
7. The Environmental Science program (undergraduate/graduate) in the College of Arts and Sciences, established in 1972, is the seventh oldest in the United States. I was able to assist in the improvement of the quality of the program by providing state-of-the-art equipment and establishing field station research in San Salvador.
8. The Criminal Justice program (undergraduate/graduate) in the School of Public Safety and Professional Studies, established in 1959, is the second oldest of its kind in New England and ninth in the United States. Through initiatives in the 1990’s, our program has become the second largest graduate program in the United States and is considered by some authorities to be the finest in the country.
9. The Forensic Science program (undergraduate/graduate) in the School of Public Safety and Professional Studies is among the very best in the country. While there is no established ranking in place for this discipline yet, experts in the field rank our program among the “top five” in the United States. Most of the progress we have made in this discipline is the result of actions taken in the past several years.
10. The Occupational Safety and Health program, first begun in 1946, offers programs at the BS and MS level and is widely recognized as superior in the Northeast in preparing students to assume safety management responsibilities in industry and government.
In recent years, we have finely honed our educational philosophy and message. We offer excellent instruction in a great variety of academic disciplines, yet we are small enough to accommodate individual programs and needs. Programs are constantly evolving to meet changing academic and career needs and the requirements of business, industry and professional fields. The University’s small class size fosters close student-faculty relationships. Eighty percent of classes have fewer than twenty students; the (full-time equivalent) student-faculty ratio is about 12:1.
Also, at UNH classwork is supported by academic services and by opportunities for enrichment. Work in small classes is supplemented by strong advisory and tutorial programs. A special program for freshmen helps students make the often difficult transition to college life. Honors programs are open to the highly motivated and accomplished. Faculty members work closely with each student.
We have approximately 150 full-time faculty, about 90 percent of whom possess a Ph.D. or the terminal degree in their field. Many of them are distinguished and known for their work throughout the country. Of particular importance to a university that prides itself on the quality of career preparation by its students is the practical experience brought to the classroom by faculty. A UNH professor is apt to have been as successful in the working world as in the classroom. Likewise, continuing relationships with alumni, business and government, mentoring of students, and internships and cooperative education programs all contribute to the defining characteristic of a UNH education— “Real-Life learning.”
An example of a dynamic campus-corporate partnership is the University of New Haven-Bayer Corporation Alliance (established in 1999), a science, technology and business compact providing academic scholarships and paid internship opportunities at Bayer, significant enhancement of UNH science programs, valuable laboratory equipment and funding for operations.
Our strategic mandate has been to continuously advance academic excellence, career relevance of the curriculum and niche programs with competitive distinction. We are proud of our progress and of our ability to state with confidence that, together with our students, “We Make Tomorrow.” This slogan reflects UNH as “a living community engaged in Real-Life learning and creating success among every constituency. Through the power of mutual investment we shape a strong and rewarding future— success on campus, in the classroom and in life.”
Development: Building Capacity and Getting Results
If an institution is to remain competitive, have the capacity to take appropriate curricular initiatives and build on its strengths, it must be able to raise sufficient dollars quickly, and the only way to do that is through a comprehensive campaign.
However, a campaign cannot be launched without a good development organization, a compelling case and a willing internal and external predisposition. None of these factors existed in 1991. It took several years to build the development infrastructure, systems and leadership, as well as to articulate a cause to inspire imagination and activate the desire to give.
In recent years, we recruited a proven, professional fund-raiser to be chief development officer (vice president for university advancement), and he has assembled an organization of eight professionals and four support staff to assist him (compared with a three-person staff, including a secretary, in 1991). Thus, we have literally created a new development office and organized a professional operation in the area of advancement services, major gift and annual fund raising, alumni relations, planned giving and stewardship relations. Over the last four years, we have attracted a dozen seven-figure gifts, with still others in development.
In the area of corporate and government support, we received— among many others—the largest grant in the university’s history: $2 million from the U.S. Department of Justice for the Dr. Henry C. Lee Institute of Forensic Science’s National Crime Scene Training & Technology Center. The grant began as an earmark in the Congress’ Justice Department appropriation act for 2002-03 and was subsequently substantiated by external peer review conducted by the National Institute of Justice. The Lee Institute was created in 1998 to provide education and training in forensic science for professionals, leveraging our academic specialization in the field.
For the first time in our 82-year history, the university has a disciplined, well-structured development organization, with clear assignments, target goals, quotas and deadlines. By leveraging a high-intensity, results-oriented operation, we hope to coalesce resources, interests and efforts for maximum results. The early returns are extremely encouraging.
Expanding our Cultural Horizons
Realization of the “idea of the University” lies in the mission not only to teach and disseminate knowledge but also to provide students and community the richness of art and culture to enlarge and refine one’s intellectual cultivation as a good in itself, worthwhile for itself, to be valued beyond knowledge and professional skill.
In recent years, we have made significant strides toward this realization. Three important examples are:
Orchestra New England (ONE) - Founded in 1974, ONE was a Yale and community-based chamber orchestra until 1992. Faced with financial difficulties, ONE sought our support, and we responded by taking them in residence (offices and overhead support) and, in 1998, assumed ownership. They are one of the finest small orchestras in the nation and are lead by Maestro James Sinclair, who is well regarded in the music world. We have engaged him as an Artist-in-Residence. ONE plays a subscription series and a variety of other performances throughout the year. Our move to take ONE as part of our University was well received. In integrating ONE into various academic programs and featuring them as a cultural attraction, we have enhanced the University and guaranteed ONE’s survival and perpetuation. As my presidency comes to an end, I am hopeful that ONE has reached a position of such strength that it can stand on its own and continue to offer a classical music alternative in a region of arts and ideas that esteems excellence.
The Seton Gallery at Dodds Hall - The Gallery was created as a space that promotes education, creative expression, cultural enrichment and innovative community outreach through art.
UNH-Alliance Theatre – The Alliance Theatre was a community theater group without a permanent home until we brought them on campus in 1992. The Theatre stages several productions each year involving community and student actors and has become a permanent part of our theatre program. We also have a highly successful Children’s Theatre that receives support from the Carolyn Foundation and The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven.
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