Dennis Assanis, provost of Stony Brook University in New York, will take office as the next president of the University of Delaware on Monday.
UD’s Board of Trustees unanimously elected Assanis at a special meeting of the board on Nov. 18, 2015. The resolution approving his appointment stipulated that he take office ‘no later than July 1, 2016.’
Assanis has been increasingly visible at UD. He had a hand in the appointment of a new athletic director Christine Rawak, whose comes with extensive fund-raising experience at the University of Michigan.
Blue Hen fans will be looking to see if the new president’s appointment represents a change of course in athletics.
UD has struggled with its football and men’s basketball programs and unlike its conference competitors, has not substantially upgraded facilities, citing the need to improve student recreation and fitness facilities.
Nancy Targett’s term as acting president will end June 5. She became UD’s acting president on July 1, 2015, with the departure of Patrick T. Harker, who took the post president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.
At the end of his term, Harker was unpopular with some faculty members who were critical of his suggestions to increase teaching loads. They were also unhappy with his involvement with an alternative higher education start-up that offered four-year degrees, with students spending much of that time studying abroad.
Under Harker, UD acquired the former Chrysler Assembly Plant site, which was converted to the STAR Campus, a public-private partnership that occupies a small portion of the nearly 300-acre site.
Harker and UD became ensnared to develop that campus with a data center and natural gas-fired power plant. UD terminated the lease for the project and now faces legal action from the developer.
The lease was terminated after heated local opposition from environmental activists and townspeople.
Harker also spearheaded construction of a $130 million laboratory project, but dropped plans for a law school, due to cost issues.
To date, UD has been able to attract students, thanks to its academic reputation and tuition rates that are below Ivy League and prestigious private colleges.
UD is a large university when compared to the small population of the state. It gets the majority of its students, from out of state (primarily, the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast).
But like all state-supported institutions, it has seen a decline in state support. It also faces the long-term threat from online programs and high student debt loads.
Targett, who earned generally high marks as acting president, will move on as provost and vice president for academic affairs at the University of New Hampshire, effective Sept. 1.
