Dr. Richard Guarasci, president of Wagner College, to assume leadership at pivotal moment for organization

Boston, MA — Dr. Richard Guarasci, president of Wagner College, has been named chairman of the board of Campus Compact, the nonprofit coalition of 1,100 college and university presidents committed to fulfilling the civic purposes of higher education.  Dr. Guarasci assumes his post from outgoing chair Dr. James B. Dworkin, chancellor of Purdue University North Central on July 1, 2014.

“It is an honor to serve on the Campus Compact board, and to have the privilege to work as its chair at a pivotal moment in the organization’s history. We are renewing our commitment to educating citizens and building communities with a new structure and planning process. This is a wonderful time to be a part of these important initiatives,” stated Dr. Guarasci.

The Campus Compact board is primarily made up of a distinguished group of college and university presidents from across the country and internationally.  The Board guides the organization in its mission of deepening higher education’s ability to improve community life and educate students for civic and social responsibility.

“It is my honor to welcome Dr. Guarasci as the new chair of the Campus Compact Board of Directors. Dr. Guarasci has a clear commitment to service learning, civic engagement and promoting civic and social responsibility in our students,” remarked Chancellor Dworkin. “He begins his term as chair at a very pivotal moment in the history of Campus Compact as the organization renews its commitment to educating citizens and building communities with a new structure and planning process. This is a wonderful time to be a part of these important initiatives and Dr.Guarasci is the perfect person to lead these efforts.”

Dr. Richard Guarasci, (pronounced Ga-rah-see) has served as President of Wagner College since June 2002. He was elected to the national Campus Compact Board of Directors in 2012.

“As Campus Compact moves forward with a new president, and a reinvigorated board, we will be building our national office around some very clear objectives: rebuilding the Campus Compact network and increasing community partnerships. In particular, we want to focus on expanding college completion by strengthening higher education’s commitment to K-12 education,” Dr. Guarasci said.

Dr. Guarasci serves on many national civic engagement initiatives in addition to Campus Compact: The Leadership Coalition of Bringing Theory to Practice Initiative of the Association of American Colleges and Universities, promoting civic learning and democratic engagement; The Anchor Institution Steering Committee, promoting university-community planned neighborhood partnerships. He also served on the National Task Force for Civic Engagement, advising the U.S. Department of Education in establishing civic learning and democratic citizenship as an essential part of our undergraduate degree that produced The Crucible Moment: College Learning and Democracy’s Future and he is the past board chair of the New American Colleges and Universities, a consortium of 20-plus private comprehensive universities and colleges from across the United States. 

In addition, Dr. Guarasci helps lead a major Wagner College initiative on Staten Island, the Port Richmond Partnership.  Through the Partnership, the College and its students work in a democratic partnership with over 20 neighborhood organizations and institutions addressing the challenges of the Port Richmond neighborhood in the areas of health care, K-12 education and economic development.

Dr. Guarasci received his B.S. from Fordham University and his M.A. in Economics and Ph.D. in Political Science from Indiana University. He is the co-author of Democratic Education in an Age of Difference:  Reinventing Citizenship in Higher Education.

About Campus Compact

Campus Compact is a national coalition of more than 1,100 college and university presidents who are committed to fulfilling the civic purposes of higher education. As the only national higher education association dedicated solely to campus-based civic engagement, Campus Compact promotes public and community service that develops students’ citizenship skills, helps campuses forge effective community partnerships, and provides resources and training for faculty seeking to integrate civic and community-based learning into the curriculum. Campus Compact’s membership includes public, private, two- and four-year institutions across the spectrum of higher education.  Learn more at www.Compact.org

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