July 10, 2019
Dear Colleagues,
This morning I received the very sad news that former UAlbany president Karen Hitchcock has passed away after a lengthy illness. Dr. Hitchcock was a trailblazer throughout her career in higher education, and the University at Albany and the Capital Region are stronger and more vibrant thanks to her significant professional and philanthropic contributions to so many of our most cherished community organizations. The entire UAlbany community extends its deepest condolences to Karen’s family and friends.
First as provost and then as our 16th president, she presided over academic and research expansions that were instrumental to solidifying UAlbany’s position today as one of the nation’s most diverse public research universities, including the development of our Health Sciences Campus into the region’s premier health sciences cluster.
Dr. Hitchcock also believed our region is stronger when its institutions work together to achieve common goals. It was in that spirit that she helped found the Business-Higher Education Roundtable to create academic-industry partnerships that drive economic growth. As part of her deep community engagement, she was a stalwart supporter of UAlbany’s internationally acclaimed New York State Writers Institute. For these and many other important contributions, Dr. Hitchcock was honored as the Academic Laureate at the University at Albany Foundation's 2018 Citizen Laureate Awards.
For Karen’s commitment to our University, to our students, and to our region, we will be forever grateful, and she will be deeply missed.
Sincerely,
Havidán Rodríguez
President