ALBANY — Departing SUNY Chancellor Kristina Johnson will continue her duties in the role to help campuses prepare for the fall semester until the SUNY board of trustees appoints an interim leadership structure. Johnson is stepping down to become the next president of the Ohio State University, effective Sept. 1, an announcement that initially left […]
ALBANY — Departing SUNY Chancellor Kristina Johnson will continue her duties in the role to help campuses prepare for the fall semester until the SUNY board of trustees appoints an interim leadership structure.
Johnson is stepping down to become the next president of the Ohio State University, effective Sept. 1, an announcement that initially left the head of the SUNY faculty union “dismayed.”
The SUNY board of trustees announced Johnson’s departure on June 3. The previous night, reacting to public reports about Johnson’s resignation, Frederick Kowal, president of United University Professions, said the “departure leaves me dismayed and disappointed given its inopportune timing.”
Kowal went on to say that SUNY is currently “wrestling” with how to safely reopen campuses in the fall after the system was forced to shut down for months due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“SUNY also faces a financial situation that has gone from precarious to critical because of the pandemic. SUNY desperately needs steady leadership as campuses plan for the fall. On June 1, UUP released its guidelines to safely reopen SUNY campuses. However, we have heard little from SUNY and almost nothing from the chancellor on this issue. We had high hopes for Chancellor Johnson when we welcomed her to SUNY in 2017. While we are dismayed at the timing of her departure, we wish her well in her next endeavor,” said Kowal.
UUP represents 42,000 academic and professional faculty and retirees, with members at 29 New York state-operated campuses, including SUNY’s public teaching hospitals and health sciences centers in Brooklyn, Buffalo, Long Island, and Syracuse. It is an affiliate of NYSUT, the American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association, and the AFL-CIO.
Johnson as chancellor
Johnson became the 13th chancellor of SUNY on April 24, 2017. Before her term officially began on Sept. 5 of that year, Johnson coordinated SUNY’s response to help the people of Puerto Rico after the devastation caused by Hurricanes Irma and Maria. It was part of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s efforts to “rescue and rebuild” the island, SUNY said.
Johnson volunteered on the island in 2018 along with SUNY and CUNY students.
“Leading SUNY has been an honor, and throughout my term I have been energized by the students, our esteemed faculty, and the brilliant leaders I have come to know and value,” Johnson said in a statement. “New York State has been welcoming to me and my wife Veronica Meinhard, and I am thankful to have the opportunity to build on SUNY’s strength as a diverse and inclusive higher education system.”
Since Johnson became chancellor, two-year community college graduation rates have increased 22 percent and the number of students requiring remediation was reduced by half, per SUNY.
She launched PRODiG (Promoting Recruitment, Opportunity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Growth), an initiative designed to increase faculty diversity across SUNY campuses by hiring 1,000 underrepresented minorities and women in STEM by 2030.
More recently, Johnson oversaw efforts to ensure the continuation of academic instruction for about 400,000 students during the COVID-19 pandemic and deliver clinical care to nearly 1,000 COVID-19 infected patients.
She also led the establishment of #SUNYTogether, a fundraising effort that provides direct aid to students impacted by the pandemic and supports technology needs.