Stockton president to retire after five decades at the university

Harvey Kesselman, who was a member of the first class of Stockton when it opened in 1971, has announced he will retire as president next June, a job he's held since 2015.

Stockton University President Harvey Kesselman speaks outside its Atlantic City campus in Atlantic City in 2018.Read moreDavid Maialetti

by Susan Snyder

Published July 20, 2022, 5:00 p.m. ET

Harvey Kesselman started his long relationship with Stockton University in 1971, when he was a student in the then-college’s first class.

He went on to become a faculty member, then moved into administration, and since 2015 has been serving as president.

But now, he’s preparing to say goodbye. Kesselman announced at the board of trustees meeting Wednesday that he would retire next June at the end of the academic year.

“There are no words to accurately express how I feel about my beloved alma mater,” Kesselman, 71, said in a statement. “My time and tenure with Stockton have been nothing short of amazing, exceeding all of my expectations as a career and a community.”

The 9,000-plus-student university plans to launch a national search for his replacement.

Kesselman led the university through its expansion to Atlantic City, opening a $178.3 million campus there in 2018, with a three-story academic center and a five-story oceanfront residence hall with 145 apartment-style rooms for more than 500 students.

“You’re going to call them condos after you see them, because they are absolutely magnificent,” Kesselman boasted on the day the residence hall was unveiled to reporters.

The university is in the process of building a second residence hall in Atlantic City.

The state has labeled Stockton an anchor institution in Atlantic City, expected to boost business and economic development.

The university also opened the Unified Science Center and the John F. Scarpa Health Sciences Center on the Galloway campus under his leadership and successfully sought increased state funding, which amounted to a 123% boost over his tenure, according to the university.

The school also has garnered awards for sustainability, civic learning and community engagement, and economic development.

“Stockton would not be the nationally ranked, thriving institution it is today if not for the dedication and hard work of Harvey Kesselman for nearly five decades,” board of trustees chair Raymond Ciccone said in a statement. “He is an extraordinary, strong leader who not only planted himself where he could grow but did the same for this once small college in the Pines.”

Kesselman will keep the title of president emeritus and tenured education professor.