Farmingdale State College Inaugurates Ninth President

Farmingdale State College officially inaugurated its ninth president, Dr. John S. Nader, during a ceremony on Friday.

Nader was appointed president of the college in March 2016 and has been on the job since last July.

The inauguration took place at the college’s Nold Athletic Complex.

Over 500 people attended the event, including SUNY Board Chairman H. Carl McCall, presidents from other academic institutions, and state and local officials.

“I am proud to join Farmingdale State College in officially celebrating Dr. Nader’s inauguration,” McCall said. “The campus has a rich, long-standing history of excellent service to students, faculty and staff, and Dr. Nader is an accomplished professional who will drive Farmingdale State College to higher levels of academic excellence and community engagement. This is a proud moment for all ofSUNY.”

Since becoming president, Nader has been spreading a “Powered by Optimism” theme on campus and across Long Island.

He has focused on new program development, advancing applied learning opportunities, expanding support for student scholarships, and improving campus aesthetics and spaces.

He celebrates student artwork with a display in the president's home. To recognize the international origin of many Farmingdale graduates, he spearheaded a project to incorporate the flags of more than 40 nations into Ralph Bunche Plaza.

Most recently, Nader served as Provost at SUNY Delhi, where he also served as Dean of the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

In addition, he was also Mayor of the City of Oneonta and spent 12 years as an Otsego County legislator.

Nader received a BA in Politics from Ithaca College and an MA and PhD in Economics from the New School for Social Research.

In his inauguration remarks, he hit upon themes such as the importance of higher education to a new generation, and by extension, the communities in which they live.

“We are living through an era when our institutions—particularly public colleges and universities - are often underappreciated, undervalued and, in some states, even under attack," he said. "This is happening at a time when the importance of colleges and universities—public and private alike-- has never been greater and when nearly all of these institutions are literally transforming the lives of their students.”