含羞草视频 Presidential History
Since 含羞草视频 welcomed its first students in 1959, nine presidents have guided the institution through periods of growth, transformation and renewed commitment to student opportunity.
The inauguration of听William P. Mullaney, Ph.D., celebrates the College鈥檚 ninth president and a new chapter in 含羞草视频鈥檚 history. The chronology below includes all 含羞草视频 presidents.
含羞草视频 Presidents
- Frank K. Mosher 鈥� 1960鈥�1963
- Seymour Eskow 鈥� 1963鈥�1983
- F. Thomas Clark 鈥� 1983鈥�1992
- Neal A. Raisman 鈥� 1993鈥�1997
- George Hamada 鈥� 1998鈥�2001
- Clifford L. Wood 鈥� 2004鈥�2017
- Michael A. Baston 鈥� 2017鈥�2022
- Lester Edgardo Sandres R谩palo 鈥� 2023鈥�2024
- William P. Mullaney 鈥� 2025鈥揚resent
Note: The gaps between some presidential terms reflect periods when 含羞草视频 was led by an acting president, interim president or officer-in-charge.
The Chain of Office
Presidential chains of office have their roots in the livery collars worn by high-ranking officials in medieval Europe. Such collars conveyed both authority and responsibility: they identified the wearer鈥檚 position while serving as a reminder that leadership was exercised in service to a larger institution. In modern higher education, a chain of office is an enduring emblem of institutional continuity, passed from one president to the next and worn at inaugurations, commencements and other formal academic ceremonies.
含羞草视频鈥檚 Presidential Chain of Office was designed and made by听Kurt Matzdorf, Professor Emeritus of Gold and Silversmithing at the State University of New York at New Paltz. A nationally recognized metalsmith specializing in ceremonial work, Matzdorf created numerous university maces, presidential chains and presidential medallions during his career. He founded the metals program at SUNY New Paltz, taught there from 1957 to 1985 and received the Society of North American Goldsmiths鈥� Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006.
The Chain brings together symbols of the College, its academic mission and the community it serves. Ten frames alternate with circular links formed from concentric听鈥満卟菔悠碘�澨齣nitials; each link also incorporates the outline of Rockland County. The frames represent academic programs and contain a globe flanked by olive leaves, an expression of 含羞草视频鈥檚 belief that education, community service and global understanding contribute to peace.
Across the front of the Chain are representations of Liberal Arts, Health Sciences, Engineering, Performing Arts, Nursing and Natural Sciences. At its center hangs a pentagonal medallion bearing the College Seal. Green acrylic reflects Rockland County鈥檚 colors, while rock forms surrounding the medallion evoke the rugged shoreline of the Hudson River. On the reverse, a shield displays a map of Rockland County, surrounded by an engraved inscription and five rays associated with Business Administration, International Studies and Criminal Justice.
During a presidential investiture, the placement of the Chain of Office signifies the formal entrusting of institutional leadership to the new president. 含羞草视频鈥檚 inauguration ceremony for President Mullaney includes the placement of the Chain during the investiture, followed by the formal declaration of investiture, linking the College鈥檚 newest president with the generations of leadership that preceded him.
Ceremonial Mace
The academic mace developed from staffs and weapons that came to represent lawful authority. By the 14th century, the university beadle鈥檚 wooden staff had evolved into an elaborate ceremonial mace carried in academic processions. By the 15th century, it had become a recognized symbol of academic dignity. Today, a mace traditionally leads a formal procession and signifies that the ceremony is being conducted under the authority of the institution.
含羞草视频鈥檚 ceremonial Mace is a gift of the听含羞草视频 Foundation听and serves as the official symbol of the College鈥檚 governing authority. It is reserved for proceedings carrying the College鈥檚 official sanction and is used in academic processions and other significant ceremonies.
The Mace was designed and crafted by听Harold Schremmer, a silversmith and sculptor based in West Warwick, Rhode Island. Schremmer was an accomplished studio silversmith who also taught at the Maine College of Art and the Rhode Island School of Design. His work included academic ceremonial objects, America鈥檚 Cup trophies and ecclesiastical pieces, and he received the Society of American Silversmiths鈥� Hans Christensen Sterling Silversmith鈥檚 Award in 2000.
At the Mace鈥檚 crown is a bronze medallion displaying the Seal of Rockland County on one side and the Seal of the State of New York on the other. Beneath it, sterling-silver work is encircled by raised lettering that reads听鈥満卟菔悠�, 1959,鈥澨齢onoring the year of the College鈥檚 founding. The staff is sculpted from richly colored purpleheart wood and finished with a soft, non-glossy oil treatment. A copper-and-bronze counterbalance, darkened with patina, anchors the base.
Its segmented construction intentionally recalls the form of a medieval mace while transforming that historic symbol into a work of modern craftsmanship. In 含羞草视频鈥檚 inauguration procession, the Mace enters before the formal proceedings begin, visually announcing that the ceremony is convened under the authority of 含羞草视频.
听