University Names Next President
Jonathan G.S. Koppell
Jonathan G.S. Koppell was selected as Montclair State University’s ninth president, the Board of Trustees announced on June 8, 2021. A nationally regarded scholar of policy, organization and management who transformed the public affairs college at Arizona State University into one of the largest, best and most innovative in the nation, will start on August 2.
Board of Trustees Chair Francis M. Cuss said Koppell was the “clear choice for all the Trustees, who were impressed with his energy, his passion, and his dedication to the ideals of public higher education.”
“He is an experienced and visionary leader with a very strong record of increasing service to students and communities, of supporting and advancing the work of the faculty, and engaging donors and alumni in the mission of his institution,” said Cuss. “He has created mutually beneficial partnerships with many external organizations and communities, and he is known on his campus as a fierce advocate for diversity, inclusion and equity. All of these qualities, coupled with his experience as a teacher, a scholar and an administrator, make him the ideal choice for Montclair State at this moment in our history.”
“I could not be more excited about joining Montclair State University,” Koppell said. “At a pivotal moment in higher education, this university – with its deep commitment to serving the public interest and advancing student success – has an opportunity to define the future. I am so impressed by what the faculty and staff have accomplished with President Cole, and I am confident we can build on this foundation in bold, imaginative ways that contribute to the prosperity, health and well-being of New Jersey and the nation.”
Koppell will succeed Susan A. Cole, who is retiring after 23 years of service. Under Cole’s leadership, the University nearly doubled its enrollment and rose from a well-respected regional master’s institution with an almost entirely commuter student population to become a doctoral research university with a sizable residential student population and a growing national reputation (see story).
“I am confident that Jonathan Koppell understands this university and will work with the campus community to continue to secure a meaningful future for Montclair State and the students and the state it serves,” Cole said.
During his decade-long tenure as dean of ASU’s Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions and vice provost for public service and social impact, the College more than doubled its enrollment, becoming the nation’s largest comprehensive public affairs college, serving more than 9,000 students in bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral programs. He also led the College to significantly improve its student retention and graduation rates through new and innovative counseling and student-support initiatives. Koppell quadrupled fundraising at the college, secured one of the largest gifts in the university’s 136-year history and tripled research funding to exceed $30 million annually.
He earned doctoral and master’s degrees in political science from the University of California – Berkeley and a baccalaureate degree in government from Harvard University. At ASU he holds the endowed Lattie and Elva Coor Presidential Chair as Professor of Public Administration and Policy and is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration. At Montclair State he will serve as a faculty member in political science.
Koppell, 51, and his wife, Jennifer Steen, have two high school-aged children. The appointment represents a return to his home region. The son of a New Jersey college professor and a long-time New York elected official, Koppell grew up in New York City and graduated from the Bronx High School of Science.
For more on Koppell’s background visit montclair.edu/new-president.