Dear Members of the Campus Community,
It is with tremendous pride and respect that I share some personnel-related news with the SUNY Oswego campus community. Dr. Jerald Woolfolk, our esteemed Vice President for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management for the past four years, has accepted an offer to become the next President at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri.
Woolfolk came to Oswego in January 2014, and immediately put her personal and professional imprint on our campus community. In providing oversight and sound leadership to the offices of admissions, financial aid, career services, health services, counseling services, athletics, campus life, residential life, and student conduct as well as Auxiliary Services, Jerald truly made our campus a better place.
She has been an instrumental member of the college’s leadership team and a valued colleague whose skills, counsel and judgment have been immeasurable to me and to her peers across campus. Those of you who have partnered with or relied on Jerald to advance a project, develop an initiative or plan an event know firsthand her dedication to expanding access and opportunity, and her relentless drive to create the most positive experience for each and every one of our students. In addition to overseeing steady enrollment growth and record-breaking applications, she has worked diligently with her staff in Student Affairs to enhance student life programming and services on campus, with the goal of fostering increased student success.
Woolfolk has also served as our interim chief diversity and inclusion officer. In addition to spearheading the creation of a Strategic Diversity & Inclusion Plan, she played a key role in guiding the college to its most culturally diverse student body in its history. Thanks to Jerald’s award-winning efforts and commitment to developing a diverse and inclusive community of scholars, SUNY Oswego has made substantial strides in fostering an environment that embraces and promotes cultural competence, civil discourse and active engagement.
Given the vast accomplishments and experiences Jerald has amassed at SUNY Oswego, it is no wonder the Lincoln University community and its Board of Curators chose her to lead their historic, liberal arts institution. Her nearly three decades in higher education administration at four institutions showcase her record as a strategic innovator in student affairs who sets clear and high goals and provides the leadership to achieve them.
We wish her the best at Lincoln University and have no doubt she will inspire and cultivate a culture of excellence at Lincoln, much like she did at SUNY Oswego. Congratulations Jerald on this well-deserved advancement, but please know that your ties to Oswego will always remain.
Vice President Woolfolk will remain on staff at SUNY Oswego through the spring 2018 semester. She assumes her post as President of Lincoln University on June 1, 2018.
Deborah F. Stanley
President