Nathan Gonyea has been named dean of the SUNY Empire State College School for Graduate Studies. He had been serving as interim dean since 2016.

Gonyea will have primary responsibility for administration of the college’s graduate programs and will work closely with academic administration, deans, associate deans, staff and faculty to develop and implement a shared vision for the School for Graduate Studies.

“Nathan Gonyea has been an outstanding member of the SUNY Empire State College academic team and I am extremely pleased that he will be joining the administration as our graduate dean,” Officer in Charge Mitchell Nesler said. “I expect we will see many contributions from Nathan in the years to come.”

“I am pleased Nathan has accepted the offer to lead the school into our next generation for graduate studies.” Interim Provost Benke said. “The School for Graduate Studies is a key aspect of the success of our strategic plan. We in the Office of Academic Affairs look forward to working in tandem with the School for Graduate Studies leadership to enhance the further development of the School for Graduate Studies’ programming and increase student success.

“I am grateful for the support and effort by the School for Graduate Studies community, which participated so actively in the dean search and shared feedback on the search committee’s selection of excellent candidates,” Benke said.

Benke also said that a search to find a permanent associate dean for the School for Graduate Studies will likely start “very quickly” and thanked Rosalyn Rufer for continuing to serve as interim associate dean, a post Gonyea held from 2015-16, until he was named interim dean.

About Nathan Gonyea

Before coming to Empire State College, Gonyea was associate professor of Educational Psychology at SUNY Oneonta, from 2012-15, and assistant professor at SUNY Oneonta from 2008-12. In 2013, he received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching. Gonyea also taught at Texas A&M International University, the Center for Integrated Teacher Education, the College of Saint Rose and the University at Albany.

Gonyea holds a Ph.D. and an M.S. in Educational Psychology and Methodology from the University at Albany, a B.S. in Psychology from Sacred Heart University and a C.A.S. in Organizational Leadership in Higher Education from the Sullivan Institute of Higher Education Leadership at the College of Saint Rose.