View Portfolio

Making a Difference for the Students We Serve

An Interview with Muriel A. Howard

by Stephen Pelletier

Muriel A. Howard officially took the helm as AASCU’s new president on August 1, 2009. Selected after a highly competitive national search, she comes to this next stage in her career from a successful tenure as president of Buffalo State College, State University of New York. Prior to accepting that position in 1996, Howard spent nearly 15 years in administration at the University at Buffalo, SUNY, capping her experience there as vice president for public service and urban affairs. She earned her bachelor’s degree at City University of New York’s Richmond College, and both a Master of Education and a Ph.D. at the University at Buffalo, SUNY. Howard is the first African-American—and second woman—to lead one of the six presidentially based higher education associations in Washington, D.C.

Howard joins AASCU during a time of unprecedented challenges and opportunities. In June, she spoke about her background and her vision for AASCU in an interview with Public Purpose.

As you leave Buffalo State, what accomplishments there make you most proud?

Overall, my experience at Buffalo State College was a wonderful and rewarding opportunity for me professionally and personally. It was also a great opportunity not only to engage with students, faculty and staff, but also to learn from them.

I initially assumed my position as the interim president of the college. To then be selected as the permanent president was a special opportunity that allowed me to make a difference in the lives of others, especially our students. It has been the most rewarding and transforming experience of my career. I am very proud that I was able to inspire and lead a change effort at Buffalo State that resulted in a much more student-oriented and student-centered institution. I leave Buffalo State knowing that it is a wonderful learning community that is diverse, purposeful, engaged and vibrant.

In terms of specific accomplishments, I was able to work with the faculty and staff to implement a new general education program entitled, “Intellectual Foundations.” The college is investing over $350 million in new capital construction projects, including the new $33 million Burchfield Penney Art Center, which was recently completed. Construction has begun on a new science and mathematics complex and a new residential hall, and will start on a new technology building in the spring. I was also pleased that I was able to increase the number of new faculty, including the college’s first two endowed chairs. Last year, for example, we were able to add about 50 new faculty positions. The leadership programs and the equity and campus diversity initiatives that have been implemented for our students and also for emerging leaders on campus—both professional staff and faculty members—will bode Buffalo State College well in the future. Most of all, I am proud of the relationship I was able to develop with students.

Read more (pdf)