Dear Wagner College community,
I came to Grymes Hill as president eight months ago, drawn — like all of you — by Wagner’s storied history, its core values, its caring community, and its dedication to student success.
In my time here, I have had the opportunity to watch our students in the classroom, on the field, on the court, on the Oval and on the stage. I have been impressed with their intelligence, their perseverance, their kindness, their eagerness to learn, and their willingness to join me in the effort to make Wagner consistently better. I eat with them in the dining hall, talk to them while walking across campus, engage with them at Pizza with the President sessions, and cheer among them and for them in all of their endeavors.
Our students are fortunate to have the opportunity to learn from, and be inspired by, our excellent faculty, who themselves are dedicated to our students and our community. They have taught generations of Seahawks to excel in their chosen fields and become well-rounded and engaged citizens of the world.
From a historical perspective, Wagner’s nearly 150-year story is built on the people who attend, teach, serve, and lead. What is often forgotten, however, is that another institutional strength is Wagner’s willingness to change to meet the needs of its students, Staten Island, and the region.
I am often reminded that the Wagner we know and love today started as neither an institution called Wagner nor on Staten Island. From the beginnings of the college, and throughout the past 142 years, it has proven its adaptability and willingness to evolve.
Over the decades, Wagner has grown new programs, established itself as a residential campus, evolved its course offerings, and became Division I in athletics. It adjusted its approach to delivering its mission numerous times, such as during two world wars and a national pandemic.
Now, Wagner College — in fact, all of higher education — faces another moment of great challenge and change. And we must rise once again to continue delivering on our mission and our promise.
I came to Wagner with the charge of harnessing the mission and values of the institution and guiding it through the national challenges that are affecting all of higher education today, and in doing so, growing enrollments, increasing the value proposition and expanding the brand of this great college.
That requires adapting to meet economic, political and population realities, and facing head-on the market forces that drive students’ and families’ expectations for a college education today and in the future.
We are fortunate to have outstanding leadership, from the Board of Trustees to the faculty and staff to our alumni who love this institution and want to see it thrive more than they want to see it hold on too tightly to old ways and past successes.
Over the last six months I have been inspired by the willingness of so many to join in the discussion to rethink how we will meet today’s challenges and still prepare our students for bright futures. What we have heard over and over again is the desire to ensure we hold to our core mission — teaching and preparing students for success — even if it means we need to rethink and recraft how we deliver on that mission.
Working with faculty leadership and our trustees, we have proposed a four-part approach to meeting the challenges of today while ensuring we deliver on our promises to our current students: provide new and enhanced academic programs for future students; modernize our approach to developing a well-rounded education; realign our majors to the changing needs of prospective students and society; and build toward an ever prouder future for our alumni and friends.
As a result of the work over these past months, and with an eye to the future, I have proposed a list of current academic programs in which we will more deeply invest, a list of new programs we should create and expand, and a list of programs we should decommission. The plan also provides the time to thoughtfully plan and implement these changes over the next academic year, by keeping those faculty in the potentially decommissioned programs teaching through the 2025-2026 academic year.
For the new and enhanced programs, we will continue to build on our historical successes in the business, health and service-related fields, education, computer technologies and theatre. Each program will be invested in, building strong external partnerships, and will align well with societal needs and those of current and future students.
To develop the proposal, we studied student interest in majors over the past several years and the economics of operating departments, as well as national predictions about the job market — and balanced those against our commitment to preparing students for their lives beyond Wagner.
While the proposal is forward looking and bold, we recognize that change is never easy — especially for those who feel themselves impacted by the reduction of certain majors and academic programs.
To be clear to all those students, faculty, alumni and partners who have invested their time, resources and energies in these academic pursuits: This proposal is not a criticism of the great work of faculty or the significant role these programs have played in the lives and careers of our students and alumni. We are, and will continue to be, proud of these programs and our faculty. We are also proud of our students, alumni and community partners who have both benefited from and strengthened these programs.
And while some of the programs are proposed to be phased out, important components of many of them will remain intact. Part of my proposal is that we continue to teach the core skills that create well-rounded graduates, such as writing, communications, ethics and leadership –— but teach them in different ways.
Additionally, I am also proposing that we expand career preparedness and practice-oriented education — done so well for years by theatre, business and the health professions, among others — to ensure that every student graduates with a clear pathway to career success or advanced study.
While the review and planning for these proposed changes are now underway, the full effect of the plan will not be in place until fall 2026. No current senior or junior will see any difference, and affected faculty will have ample time to continue their outstanding service to our students. Additionally, both faculty and staff will work one-on-one with our current sophomores and freshmen to ensure they graduate on time.
In our caring model of student support and success, every individual student matters. The programs I have proposed phasing out, taking into account both majors and minors, affect less than 9% of our current undergraduates — a population well within our ability to support effectively through their graduation.
Over the coming weeks I will continue to meet with faculty, staff, students, parents, alumni and partners to discuss this proposal and other ideas that will strengthen Wagner. I ask everyone for your continued support.
To that end, I would like to invite current students who are enrolled in impacted academic programs to meet with me and discuss our support at 4:20 p.m. Thursday, March 13 in Spiro 2, or at 1 p.m. Tuesday, March 25, also in Spiro 2, as their schedules permit.
Further, I will hold an online meeting with parents of students in impacted programs at 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 26; a separate email will provide the link to that meeting.
As this important outreach continues, some of you will have specific questions. You can always take advantage of our Network Ensuring Seahawks Thrive (NEST), thenest@wagner.edu or call (718) 420-4444.
Wagner College’s best days lie ahead. Thank you again for your support of the College,
Jeffrey Doggett