Harvey Kesselman

Dr. Harvey Kesselman is the fifth president of Stockton University in Galloway Township, New Jersey, currently serving as interim president.^[1]He is the first Stockton alumnus to become president and was a member of the first class at Stockton. Kesselman was among those students affectionately referred to as the “Mayflower” students, because the first classes in 1971 were held at the Mayflower Hotel, located on the Atlantic City boardwalk, while construction was being completed on the first academic buildings on the main campus in Galloway.^[2]

Education and Career

Kesselman received his bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Stockton University, his master’s degree in Student Personnel Services/Counseling from Rowan University, and his doctorate in Higher Education Administration from Widener University.

His previous senior leadership roles at Stockton include serving as provost and executive vice president; dean, School of Education; interim vice president for Administration and Finance; CEO of the Southern Regional Institute (SRI) and Educational Technology Training Center (ETTC); and vice president for Student Affairs. Kesselman also is a tenured professor in Stockton’s School of Education.^[3]

Kesselman has been appointed by New Jersey governors and state education leaders to serve as the senior college representative on a number of authorities, committees and task forces. He served on the Executive Committee of the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority (HESAA), which oversees New Jersey's $1 billion student financial aid program.^[4]

Kesselman remains involved in many national academic organizations. He is a frequent presenter at the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), the American Council on Education (ACE), and the Society for College and University Planning (SCUP). He also serves as a reviewer for the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE).^[5]

Kesselman served on the Governor's Task Force to improve the NJ STARS program; participated on the New Jersey College and Career Readiness Task Force; advised the New Jersey State College and University Presidents' Council regarding accountability and assessment; represented the senior public colleges and universities in the NJ Committee of Experts on Campus Sexual Assault Issues; served as one of six representatives appointed by the Chancellor of Higher Education to author and develop the NJ Student Unit Record Enrollment (SURE) statewide data and monitoring system; founded and chaired the SRI & ETTC Consortium, which includes more than 90 school districts throughout New Jersey; and serves as a reviewer for the Middle States Association Commission on Higher Education. He also serves as the senior public college representative on the New Jersey Higher Education Leadership Team (HELT), which considers policy questions and recommends strategies regarding the implementation of the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC).^[6]

He was set to become president of the University of Southern Maine in the summer of 2015, but chose to remain at Stockton at the request of the Board of Trustees, following the resignation of the immediate past president, Dr. Herman Saatkamp, Jr.^[7]

Personal Life

Kesselman is married to Lynne Kesselman, who received both her bachelor’s degree in Business in 1982, and Master of Arts Degree in Instructional Technology in 2005, from Stockton. She taught at Egg Harbor Township High School for 13 years and was chosen by the U.S. Department of Education to receive the American Star of Teaching Award for New Jersey.^[8]

Kesselman is actively involved in his community, having been elected in 2009 as a Democrat to serve on the Hamilton Township, Atlantic County, New Jersey Township Committee^[9] and has served on the Board of Education of the Hamilton Township Schools, in addition to serving on the boards of numerous other community and civic organizations.

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