Posted by public affairs on July 14, 19100 at 11:54:57:
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NEW YORK - Patricia O'Donnell Ewers will retire as president of Pace University effective July 15. "In her ten years at Pace, she has led the University through a series of transformations that has repositioned the institution for the 21st Century," said Aniello A. Bianco, chairman of the board of trustees. "We are truly grateful for all she has done for Pace."
On July 1, 1990, Dr. Ewers became the fifth president and the first woman to lead the University. Of the many accomplishments of the Ewers decade one is particularly notable for its impact on the institution's future and its financial stability. This is the completion of the $55 million Campaign for Pace. The endowment has quadrupled and it is now approaching $100 million, putting Pace in top ten percent of colleges across the country as far as their endowments.
During her tenure as president, Ewers achieved many of her goals for Pace. "Since her arrival in 1990, the academic programs are stronger than ever," said Marilyn Jaffe-Ruiz, provost. "The curriculum now includes technological expertise, international perspective and other diverse elements needed to prepare students for today's global society."
Ewers spearheaded the initiative to create a multi-campus information technology enhanced university. "Dr. Ewers' leadership in building the necessary information technology infrastructure, resources and processes has been extraordinary," said Frank Monaco, chief information officer. "Thanks to her vision and foresight Pace is positioned to capitalize on the "e" and "dot com" revolution, while maintaining its core focus on the delivery of the highest quality instruction by information technology enhanced and equipped faculty and staff."
Another of Ewers' priorities as president has been to enhance the way Pace presents itself as a physical campus. Residence halls and classroom buildings in New York City and Westchester were renovated. In Pleasantville, the Ann and Alfred Goldstein Academic Center, a state-of-the-art building for integrated learning and teaching for the schools of business and computer science and information systems, was built in 1993. And this year at the Law School in White Plains, a new academic building was completed and serves as the centerpiece of a redesigned campus plan.
Dr. Ewers was formerly chief academic officer and a professor of English at DePaul University in Chicago. A graduate of Loyola University of Chicago, where she was awarded the Ph.D. in English, Dr. Ewers has been published by College Board Publications, and Briefing of the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education.
Active in a wide variety of professional organizations, Dr. Ewers is a member of the Commission on Leadership and Institutional Effectiveness of the American Council of Education; the board of trustees of the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities (New York), which she has chaired; and serves as past chair of the board of directors of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities. She also serves on the Committee for Economic Development and the Citizen's Budget Commission of New York City, and as a trustee of El Mueso del Barrio and Our Lady of Mercy Medical Center. Patricia Ewers is a director of Fortune Brands, Inc., the American General Life Insurance Company of New York, and the United States Life Insurance Company. This past September, Crains New York Business named Dr. Ewers one of the 100 Most Influential Women in New York City.
As a lasting tribute to the University's fifth president, the board of trustees of Pace University established the Patricia O. Ewers Center for the Arts and Multicultural Studies as a vehicle to build the type of programming that Ewers thought so important within the university setting. The Ewers Center for the Arts provides Pace University's lower Manhattan and Westchester communities with intellectual and cultural enrichment through the fine and performing arts, multi-media presentations, lectures and conferences. It serves as a catalyst for works and programs in the arts and multicultural experiences.
Dr. Ewers and her husband, John L. Ewers, will retire to Hinsdale, Chicago.
Pace is a comprehensive, independent University with campuses in New York City and Westchester County. Nearly 13,500 students are enrolled in undergraduate, graduate and professional degree programs in the Dyson College of Arts and Sciences, Lubin School of Business, School of Computer Science and Information Systems, School of Education, School of Law, Lienhard School of Nursing and the World Trade Institute.