Mark M. Chamberlain (1931–2014) was an American educator and the fourth president of

Glassboro State College Rowan University is a public research university in Glassboro, New Jersey, with a medical campus in Stratford and medical and academic campuses in Camden. It was founded in 1923 as Glassboro Normal School on a site donated by 107 residents. ...

(now known as

Rowan University Rowan University is a public research university in Glassboro, New Jersey, with a medical campus in Stratford and medical and academic campuses in Camden. It was founded in 1923 as Glassboro Normal School on a site donated by 107 residents. ...

) from 1969 to 1984.Forand, Rebecca
"Former Rowan University President Dr Mark Chamberlain Dies"
''South Jersey Times'', 31 March 2014. Retrieved 1 April 2014.

Life

Chamberlain was born in

Pawtucket, Rhode Island Pawtucket is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 75,604 at the 2020 census, making the city the fourth-largest in the state. Pawtucket borders Providence and East Providence to the south, Central Falls ...

and raised in

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

. After graduating from Pittsburgh's South Hills High School in 1949, he received a bachelor's degree in chemistry from

Franklin and Marshall College Franklin & Marshall College (F&M) is a private liberal arts college in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It employs 175 full-time faculty members and has a student body of approximately 2,400 full-time students. It was founded upon the merger of Frankli ...

Lancaster, Pennsylvania Lancaster, ( ; pdc, Lengeschder) is a city in and the county seat of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It is one of the oldest inland cities in the United States. With a population at the 2020 census of 58,039, it ranks 11th in population amon ...

, and subsequently attended the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...

where he earned a

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...

(Ph.D.) in

inorganic chemistry Inorganic chemistry deals with synthesis and behavior of inorganic and organometallic compounds. This field covers chemical compounds that are not carbon-based, which are the subjects of organic chemistry. The distinction between the two disci ...

.Rowan University
Office of the President: Dr. Mark M. Chamberlain, 1969-1984
. Retrieved 1 April 2014. Chamberlain had three sons (David, Mark, and Matthew) with his first wife, Miriam Chamberlain (née Ewing.) Chamberlain taught chemistry at

Western Reserve University Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

, now

Case Western Reserve Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a private research university in Cleveland, Ohio. Case Western Reserve was established in 1967, when Western Reserve University, founded in 1826 and named for its location in the Connecticut Western Reser ...

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

for 13 years, also serving as assistant chair of the chemistry department and vice provost for student services. He was appointed as the fourth president of Glassboro State College in 1968 after being selected by the students and faculty of the college. Previous presidents at Glassboro had been appointed by the sitting

New Jersey governor The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The official res ...

. During his tenure as president, Glassboro transitioned from a small

teachers college A normal school or normal college is an institution created to train teachers by educating them in the norms of pedagogy and curriculum. In the 19th century in the United States, instruction in normal schools was at the high school level, turni ...

in Southern

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

to a multipurpose institution, creating three new academic divisions and expanding the school's enrollment from 3,500 to 8,800 students by 1984. After leaving the college presidency, Chamberlain taught as a chemistry professor until his retirement in 2000. Chamberlain died on March 29, 2014, at age 82. Rowan University's student center, completed in 1974, was renamed named in honour of Chamberlain in 2006.Rowan University
Chamberlain Student Center Overview - History
. Retrieved 1 April 2014.

References

1931 births 2014 deaths Franklin & Marshall College alumni Case Western Reserve University faculty Rowan University faculty People from Pawtucket, Rhode Island People from Pittsburgh People from Glassboro, New Jersey University of Illinois College of Liberal Arts and Sciences alumni {{US-academic-administrator-1930s-stub