Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/469117
76 Worcester Business Journal • www.wbjournal.com CENTRAL MASS. 2025: EDUCATION Assumption College Anna Maria College Becker College Clark University Fitchburg State University Joseph H. Hagan 1978 - 1998 Thomas R. Plough 1998 - 2007 Francesco C. Cesareo 2007 - present 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Arnold C. Weller 1987-1998 Franklin M. Loew 1998 - 2003 Kenneth E. Zirkle 2004 - 2008 John Prosser (interim) 2008-2010 Robert E. Johnson 2010 - present Richard P. Traina 1984 - 2000 John P. Bassett 2000 - 2010 David P. Angel 2010 - present Rev. Gerald Reedy, S.J. 1994 - 1997 Vincent J. Mara 1975 - 2003 Robert V. Antonucci 2003 - present Lowell C. Smith 1978 - 1996 James C. Darazsdi 1996 - 1998 Debra M. Townsley 1998 - 2010 Sr. Rita Larivee 1993-1994 William R. Dill (interim) 1995-1996 Bernard S. Parker 1996-1999 William D. McGarry 1999-2006 Jack P. Calareso 2007 - 2014 Mary Lou Retelle * Title of leader is chancellor. ** Based in Boston, opened Worcester campus in 2000. (interim) 2014 - present 2011 - present 25 years of college leadership Who has occupied the president's office at the region's 14 colleges and universities over the last 25 years? Here's a timeline for each school. More learning anytime, anywhere particularly in New England, said Paul Brower, assistant dean for enrollment at Nichols College in Dudley. "The stagnant growth is very real through the graduating class of 2018," Brower said, predicting that there may be a small uptick after that. What's a small regional school to do? While Nichols actually set an enrolllment record this fall, Brower said officials aren't ignoring changing demographics. He said the strategy has been to boost out-of-state recruitment in states like Florida and California, where there are a higher number of students graduating from high school, as well as boosting online offerings to make programs available to a wider audience of students. The same is true at Anna Maria College in Paxton, another historically regional school that's taking a wider view through a five-year strategic plan. "We'd like to see our reach go well beyond what has been our traditional area," said Peter Miller, dean of admis- sions and financial aid at Anna Maria. He said Anna Maria is leveraging tech- nology, including online education, to reach more prospective students. T echnology is responsible for the rapid transforma- tion of the education sector, and in many cases, the timing couldn't be better. There was a hearty appetite for higher education during the Great Recession, which led to a spike in enrollment, but it was short-lived. As the economy recovers, people are returning to the workforce, and that's coinciding with a slight dip in the number of students graduating from high school, BY EMILY MICUCCI Worcester Business Journal Staff Writer College of the Holy Cross Nichols College Rev. John E. Brooks, S.J. 1970 - 1994 Rev. Philip L. Boroughs, S.J. 2012 - present Rev. Michael C. McFarland, S.J. 2000 - 2012 Frank Vellaccio (interim) 1998 - 2000 Gerald Fels (interim) 2010 - 2011 Susan West Engelkemeyer Sr. Bernadette Madore 1977- 1993