Hartwick’s Drugovich

To Serve Through ’24

She Inspires, Leads, Chairman

Says In Announcing Extension

By JIM KEVLIN • for www.AllOTSEGO.com

ONEONTA – Hartwick College trustees announced today they offered President Margaret L. Drugovich an eight-year extension of her contract and she has accepted.

Her third contract since her arrival on Oyaron Hill in 2008, it begins June 1 and continues until June 30, 2024.

“The board is confident that Dr. Drugovich will continue to inspire and to lead this community of dedicated scholars, teachers, administrators and students and that she is the right leader for this time in Hartwick’s history,” said Francis D. Landrey, a New York City attorney and chair of the trustees, in announcing the extension.  “There is no one who believes in Hartwick College – and the value of this liberal arts education – more than President Drugovich.

He called her “a dedicated and exemplary leader.”

Drugovich was similarly delighted, calling Hartwick “an outstanding liberal arts college, one that any educator would be proud to serve … So many people care deeply about Hartwick. I look forward to working with the Board, our talented faculty and staff, and our dedicated alumni as we guide the College into its future for the benefit of generations of students to come.”

Since her appointment as Hartwick’s 10th president, highlights of her tenure have included the $32 million “Campaign for Hartwick Students,” now coming to a successful conclusion, and obtaining a $1 million gift from former Intel board chair William Campbell for construction of the Campbell Fitness Center and renovations of the Dewar Student Union.

She championed the innovative three-year degree program and launched the Center for Craft Food & Beverage, positioning the college in the center of a growing local industry.  In the past year, she negotiated bonding through Otsego Now, the county’s IDA, for renovation of several residences and construction of a new dormitory, expected to begin later this year.

Drugovich has also raised Hartwick’s visibility in higher education generally, including serving on the a bipartisan U.S. Senate Task Force reviewing government regulations of higher education, as Division III NCAA president and on Council of Independent College’s (CIC) Steering Committee on the Future of Independent Higher Education.

Her tenure has not been without challenges.   When the Great Recession hit, she made staff reductions necessary to balance the budget.  When an unexpected shortfall in freshman enrollment occurred in the spring of 2015, she also initiated a round of layoffs, although several of those who lost their jobs were brought back as other positions opened up.

The layoff plan, implemented with the support of the trustees, nonetheless resulted in some unhappiness among the staff and faculty.  The Faculty Senate attempted several “no confidence” votes over the winter, finally passing one on April 11 by a majority of faculty present at a Senate meeting, but not a majority of the faculty as a whole.

The trustees decision to extend Drugovich’s contract represents a reaffirmation of the board’s conifidence in the executive.