Hofstra University names Dr. Susan Poser as its ninth and first woman president

After a year long search, Dr. Susan Poser will replace President Stuart Rabinowitz as the ninth president of Hofstra University // Photo courtesy of PR Newswire

Hofstra University President Stuart Rabinowitz announced his retirement on Jan. 28, 2020, and the University has been looking for a replacement since. The search, which lasted nearly a year, has finally come to an end.

An email sent out to members of the Hofstra community on Wednesday, Dec. 9 announced that Dr. Susan Poser, the current Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at the University of Illinois at Chicago, will serve as Hofstra University’s next president.

“When I heard that Hofstra was looking for a president … and learned more about Hofstra … I was so impressed with it,” said Poser, who grew up in New York and has memories of Hofstra dating back to the 1970s. “It’s a very ambitious place. The growth has been extraordinary over the past twenty years.”  

Poser talked about the issues on college campuses that mean the most to her, including interdisciplinary research and diversifying faculty.

“It’s critical to think about increasing [the] diversity of faculty because the diversity of the student body is increasing, and will continue to increase,” Poser said. “That’s just the demographics of this country … It’s important that the faculty reflect that, and that students can look up and see somebody who they can really relate to in the front of the class.”

Like Poser, some students also consider diversifying faculty a priority.

“There’s only one [person of color] on the [senior administration] board and he’s the Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer,” said Holdan Nieves, a junior political science and film production double major. “I would say include more than just old white people in making the largest decisions for a diverse student body.”

Other students hope to see Poser take action against what they perceive to be a greater bigotry problem at Hofstra.

“My hope is [she] will confront some of the larger issues around campus,” said Katie Blakeley, a sophomore English and drama major. Blakeley said she would like to see racism and anti-Semitism on campus addressed.

Another chief concern among the student body is the rising cost of attendance at the University.

“I don’t think we should be in debt for years when our [current] college experience [is] through a laptop camera in our bedroom,” Nieves said.

Students also feel that more should be done to help the student body financially, starting with campus employment.

“The positions that are $7.25 [to] $9.25 [per] hour are just not enough for us as college students when the school charges so much to begin with,” said Nilesh Rakhani, a senior fine arts major. Rakhani also suggested that student jobs at Hofstra should start paying New York state minimum wage.

“I would like Dr. Poser to know she is welcomed at Hofstra and many people are interested to see what she does,” Blakeley said.

According to the University’s announcement, Poser will take Rabinowitz’s place effective Aug.1, 2021.