The Rider University Board of Trustees recently announced the appointment of Gregory G. Dell’Omo, Ph.D., as Rider’s seventh president. Dell’Omo will assume the presidency on Aug. 1.
The Rider University Board of Trustees recently announced the appointment of Gregory G. Dell ‘Omo, Ph.D as Rider’s seventh president. Dell’Omo will succeed Mordechai Rozanski, who is retiring at the end of July.
Dell’Omo will step down from his position at Rob Morris University (RMU) in Pittsburgh at the end of the 2014-2015 academic year. Rider University is currently celebrating its 150th anniversary, which will culminate with Dell’Omo’s inauguration on Aug. 1.
“The Rider opportunity is an exciting one, and I am honored to have been selected to lead this outstanding university,” Dell’Omo said, adding that while leaving RMU and the progress and achievements that it has made over the past ten years is difficult, returning to his home state of New Jersey where he will be closer to his extended family was an important factor in his decision.
As the seventh president of RMU (2005-2015), Dell’Omo led the University’s most recent five-year strategic plan and its most comprehensive capital campaign, which raised $41 million, exceeding its goal. The campaign funded two academic buildings, helped boost RMU’s endowment by more than 60 percent and allowed the university to provide 30 new endowed scholarships and a research center focused on achievement among African American men.
Dell’Omo built on RMU’s long-standing tradition of educating nontraditional students and working adults by enhancing its online degree programs. In just three years, online enrollment has climbed to 709 students. Robert Morris also helped RMU to become one of the first private institutions to participate in the federal Yellow Ribbon Program. Under that program, RMU agrees to cover the difference between the cost of tuition and benefits that eligible veterans receive.
Under Dell’Omo’s leadership the University also saw undergraduate enrollment grow by a staggering 35 percent; added many accreditations and honors, including AACSB International – The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, a distinction enjoyed by only five percent of business schools worldwide; and cheered on several of RMU’s NCAA Division I sports teams as they enjoyed unprecedented success.
Dell’Omo has a doctorate in industrial relations/human resource management from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He held previous academic positions at Canisius College and Saint Joseph’s University, where he was dean of the Haub School of Business and vice president for external affairs. He and his wife, Polly, have three children and two grandchildren.
Rozanski announced his decision to retire as president of Rider last January. Highlights of his tenure, which began in 2003, include strategic investments in new undergraduate and graduate programs, the establishment of the two-campus Westminster College of the Arts, a substantial expansion of scholarship support for students, extensive facility improvements on both campuses and impressive fundraising results.
Kennedy said, “Mordechai Rozanski has made Rider University better in every way. I don’t believe there is anyone affiliated with the University or Mort who hasn’t been impressed with his vision, leadership and achievements. We are deeply indebted to his service and devotion to Rider, and pleased that Mort agreed to extend his second five-year term by two years to coincide with the University’s 150th anniversary.”
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