February 26, 2025
Colleagues,
I’m writing to you with the news that after 23 years at Wagner College, Dr. Ruta Shah-Gordon will retire at the end of the year.
Of the four presidents Ruta has worked with, I have known her for the shortest period, but it did not take long to appreciate the role she has played for Wagner. Since my earliest days of the presidential transition, Ruta has been a consistent voice bridging the past to the present and helping me understand and appreciate our cultures and our people. I know my experience is the same as it has been for many of you, and so many of our students.
Ruta has called her tenure here “an incredible journey.” During her time overseeing campus life and enrollment, she touched many aspects of the college’s operations and had a profound influence on thousands of Wagner students.
We will celebrate her accomplishments at an appropriate time later this year, but I thought it important to share some of what she told me about her tenure at Wagner:
“The things that I have valued the most during my time are both the community at Wagner and the larger Staten Island neighborhood. From our students who always push and help us become better, to our faculty and staff and their genuine caring, to our supportive relationships with neighbors across the island, the people are what has made this experience truly special.”
Wagner is strong because of our community, and Ruta has been a constant presence and leader. While she will surely be missed, we all should take comfort in knowing she has developed a great team, and with them in place to build on her legacy we will continue to thrive.
Please join me in wishing Ruta the best in whatever future endeavors she chooses to undertake.
Best,
Jeffrey Doggett, President