By CHAD GAMBOA, TOM MCDONALD, and TENNY SNYDER
The Newsroom
The Newsroom class at The College of Saint Rose welcomed former Saint Rose president, Dr. Louis C. Vaccaro Thursday at the Center for Communications and Interactive Media. Vaccaro was on campus to promote his new, self-published memoir, Around the Corner: From Shoeshine Boy to College President.
During his classroom visit, Vaccaro spent time sharing vignettes with students about his early upbringing, stories he touches upon in his seventh book. Vaccaro served as college president from 1983 to 1996.
During his early tenure as Saint Rose’s seventh president, Vaccaro struggled with expanding the college.
His approach was to make the college more inclusive. At the time of his leadership, Saint Rose was still considered a women’s college. To encourage male enrollment, Vaccaro focused on expanding the athletic department and taking it from a school with club sports to one with NCAA sanctioned teams.
Another strategy Vaccaro executed was bringing international students into the Saint Rose community. At the time of his presidency, 32 countries were represented at the college.
“He was big on diversifying the college,” said Jackie Birk, associate director of the Higher Education and Opportunity and Access programs. “He was a great fundraiser, put the college on the map, especially outside of the Capital Region.”
Photographs in the college’s history, “Of Glory and Praise,” feature Vaccaro fundraising in Saratoga alongside philanthropist Mary Lou Whitney and actor Tony Randall.
When he first arrived at Saint Rose, a number of buildings were in a state of disrepair, he said, and the college was suffering from a drop in enrollment and financial instability.
“I like challenges,” he said. “The search committee made me feel very welcome.”
Before arriving in Albany, Vaccaro had developed extensive experience in academia, serving in faculty and administrative positions at St. Mary’s College; Notre Dame, Indiana; California State University-Northridge; Marquette University, Milwaukee; and at the University of Portland in Oregon.
His own education grew from his father’s directive to his family at home: “Who does not work does not eat: who works, eats.” This mantra influenced him throughout his life.
His education after high school began with junior college, after which he joined the Air Force. Following the Korean War he used the GI bill to complete his education, and earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California. While raising a family, Vaccaro completed two master’s degrees and a doctorate.
For many years, he has spent a lot of time abroad, working with international students, and now serving as an international adviser at the University of Science and Technology in China.
As Saint Rose faces a crossroads now with its eighth president, Dr. R. Mark Sullivan, preparing to step down, Vaccaro said the formula for a successful college doesn’t change. A great institution for higher learning is based on two elements: “The best faculty and the best, most promising students.” In addition, when a school has students from all over the world in one classroom, that’s when real education happens, he said.
Vaccaro’s book, a memoir, is available at the Saint Rose bookstore. For more on this story, readers may visit http://youtu.be/717DnSXlDFE to view a portion of his visit with the Newsroom. An upcoming interview with Vaccaro will also be featured on WAMC’s radio show, The Roundtable, hosted by Joe Donahue, an adjunct teacher in the Communications Department.
