Ronald M. Berkman (born April 17, 1947)
was the president of
Cleveland State University
Cleveland State University (CSU) is a public research university in Cleveland, Ohio. It was established in 1964 and opened for classes in 1965 after acquiring the entirety of Fenn College, a private school that had been in operation since 1923. ...
(CSU), a position he assumed July 1, 2009.
Berkman has been a peripatetic academic, working at Princeton's
Woodrow Wilson School
The Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (formerly the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs) is a professional public policy school at Princeton University. The school provides an array of comprehensive course ...
, the
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...
,
Brooklyn College
Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls about 15,000 undergraduate and 2,800 graduate students on a 35-acre campus.
Being New York City's first publ ...
,
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, the ...
, and the
University of Puerto Rico
The University of Puerto Rico ( es, Universidad de Puerto Rico, UPR) is the main public university system in the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a government-owned corporation with 11 campuses and approximately 58,000 students and 5,3 ...
.
Education
He started college as a part-time student at
William Paterson College
William Paterson University, officially William Paterson University of New Jersey (WPUNJ), is a public university in Wayne, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education.
Founded in 1855 and was named after American ju ...
while working to support his mother. He supported himself in college by driving a beer truck and by working in a liquor store and a gypsum factory.
He eventually became a full-time student and majored in urban sociology. He received his Ph.D. from
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...
in 1977.
Florida International University
Berkman was a dean at
Baruch College
Baruch College (officially the Bernard M. Baruch College) is a public college in New York City. It is a constituent college of the City University of New York system. Named for financier and statesman Bernard M. Baruch, the college operates und ...
and dean of urban affairs for the
City University of New York
The City University of New York ( CUNY; , ) is the Public university, public university system of Education in New York City, New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven Upper divis ...
.
In 1990, Berkman was the director of the Urban Summit.
Berkman was
Provost and Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at
Florida International University
Florida International University (FIU) is a public university, public research university with its main campus in Miami-Dade County. Founded in 1965, the school opened its doors to students in 1972. FIU has grown to become the third-largest uni ...
in Miami, where he was in the C-suite from 1997 through 2007.
Berkman began his time at FIU as dean of the College of Urban and Public Affairs.
He was later Executive Dean over the Nursing, Health Sciences, Public Health, Social Work, and some other programs.
He was also involved with FIU working to open colleges of Law and Medicine. He has also served as Executive Dean of the College of Health and Urban Affairs at FIU.
Cleveland State University
It became known on April 24, 2009, that Berkman would be the new president at Cleveland State University. He was voted unanimously as the new president of Cleveland State University on April 26, 2009. He assumed his position there on July 1, 2009.
As of 2009 Berkman's initial base salary was $400,000 a year, which is more than all but two public university presidents in Ohio. He was the subject of controversy when it was learned that CSU, a publicly funded university, would be paying up to $85,000 towards Berkman's home. In January 2013 he signed a contract extension through 2017. In April 2013 the Cleveland State Faculty Senate voted 31-11 for a vote of
no confidence
A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...
in Berkman over the transition of CSU from a four credit hour per class university to a three credit hour per class university.
In October 2017, Berkman was criticized for failing to condemn homophobic flyers on campus.
Below was his first issued statement that was highly criticized:
Personal life
He was born on April 17, 1947, to Sidney and Hannah Berkman.
When Berkman was 19 years old, his father Sidney Berkman died from complications from cancer.
Berkman currently is married to Patsy Bilbao-Berkman.
They are the parents of four children.
At the time of his appointment to be president of CSU, his wife was a recruiter for the
University of New Mexico
The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...
, but operating primarily in Florida. He became the first Cleveland State University president to live outside
Shaker Heights, Ohio
Shaker Heights is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2020 Census, the city population was 29,439. Shaker Heights is an inner-ring streetcar suburb of Cleveland, abutting the eastern edge of the city's limits. In July 1911, ...
.
He has also written an article for
The Huffington Post
''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...
.
References
External links
President Ronald Berkman TwitterCleveland ''Plain Dealer'' article on Berkman
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berkman, Ronald M.
1947 births
Living people
William Paterson University alumni
Princeton University alumni
University of California, Berkeley faculty
New York University faculty
University of Puerto Rico faculty
Princeton University faculty
Presidents of Cleveland State University
Baruch College faculty
Brooklyn College faculty