University of Baltimore President Announces Retirement
September 3, 2013
Contact: University Relations
Phone: 410.837.5739
University of Baltimore President Robert Bogomolny announced to students, faculty, staff and alumni that he will retire effective August 2014.
"It has been my distinct honor to serve the University of Baltimore during the past 11 years, and I am extremely proud to have been part of the progress that the University has made," Bogomolny wrote in an email to the campus community. "This has been one of the most gratifying times of my professional and personal life, in large part because UB is an institution that makes a real difference in people's lives."
Bogomolny has served as UB's president since August 2002. During his tenure, the University experienced considerable growth in terms of enrollment, academic programs, fundraising and campus infrastructure:
- Student headcount has grown 32.8 percent since 2003; full-time faculty headcount has increased 33.1 percent during the same period.
- In 2007, Bogomolny oversaw UB's return to four-year education, as the University admitted freshmen for the first time in 32 years.
- UB has launched 31 new academic programs since 2002, and recently completed the most successful fundraising campaign in its history, nearly doubling the previous mark.
- U.S. News & World Report ranked the University of Baltimore among the top 25 public universities in the northern region in its 2013 America's Best Colleges guide.
"Bob's legacy is best captured by the entrepreneurial spirit he engendered across his campus, creating what can only be called 'the new UB,'" said University System of Maryland Chancellor William E. Kirwan. "As impressive as the physical changes have been—the new Student Center, the new law center, and others—it is the less visible changes that define Bob's impact. Under his leadership, UB has become a model for expanded access to higher education, innovative community engagement, extraordinary sustainability efforts, and—most importantly—greater academic and economic opportunities for a growing student population. Bob's leadership and insight have been invaluable to UB and the University System of Maryland."
"Under President Bogomolny's leadership, the University of Baltimore has experienced remarkable growth and change," said Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley. "He has energized the UB campus and has played a significant role in the revitalization of the center of our state's largest city. His legacy will be one of transformation, commitment, and tireless advocacy for the importance of urban public higher education. Bob has been a tremendous leader for our city and our state. And I wish him the very best."
USM Board of Regents Chair James L. Shea shared the following: "Drawing on his high-level experience in both the public and private sectors, Bob Bogomolny has been a truly transformational leader for the University of Baltimore. Under his leadership, the institution's physical, academic, and cultural changes have been revolutionary, while, at the same time, honoring and maintaining UB's historic mix of education in law, business, public policy, and the arts and sciences. On behalf of the USM Board of Regents, I thank him for his service."
Under Bogomolny's leadership, the University implemented a campus master plan that has increased campus square footage by more than 50 percent and significantly recast the UB Midtown area. The initiative has brought $275 million of capital investment to midtown Baltimore, including $123 million in private funding. Major projects include construction of the University's first-ever Student Center; the Fitzgerald, an innovative public/private partnership that includes a Barnes & Noble campus bookstore, 275 residences and a 1,200-space garage; conversion of the historic Loyola Federal Savings and Loan Building to the Liberal Arts and Policy Building; and a privately-financed and owned 323-bed student housing project marketed to UB students. Launched by an international design competition that attracted notable architects worldwide, the John and Frances Angelos Law Center opened in April 2013, a landmark structure with an anticipated LEED-platinum certification. Additional sustainability efforts have resulted in a 25 percent reduction in the campus carbon footprint and the greening of UB's urban streetscape with trees and shrubs.
"I have been a part of the University of Baltimore School of Law for 40 years. In President Bogomolny's 11 years at UB, he has worked wonders," said Byron Warnken, associate professor of law. "He expanded the University from three schools to four and he started a four-year undergraduate school for the first time since 1975. Moreover, President Bogomolny did the unthinkable—in tough economic times, he persuaded the state to build us a 12-story, 192,000-square-foot law center. In addition, he has proven that he is not afraid to make the 'tough calls.' President Bogomolny will leave UB in the strongest shape that it has ever enjoyed since its founding in 1925."
Bogomolny joined UB from G.D. Searle & Company, where he served as corporate senior vice president and general counsel while also leading its government affairs department and serving on its executive management committee. He had previously served as professor of law and dean of the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law at Cleveland State University from 1977 to 1987, and also as professor of law at Southern Methodist University School of Law for seven years. Following a year-long sabbatical, Bogomolny will join the law faculty at UB.
In the coming weeks, USM Chancellor Kirwan will appoint a search and screening committee to undertake a national search for President Bogomolny's successor. The committee will be comprised of a balanced selection of representatives from the key campus constituents. The search process traditionally takes six months or less. The USM Board of Regents makes the final selection of the president, and it is anticipated that the new president will be on board by the beginning of the 2014 academic year.
The University of Baltimore is a member of the University System of Maryland and comprises the College of Public Affairs, the Merrick School of Business, the UB School of Law and the Yale Gordon College of Arts and Sciences.