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As public opinion began to sour on higher education, R. Barbara Gitenstein became president of The College of New Jersey (TCNJ), today one of the most competitive and successful public undergraduate institutions in the Northeast, second only to Princeton in completed graduate degrees in the State of New Jersey. During her nineteen-year tenure as president, she confronted multiple crises, including 9-11, student deaths, controversial speakers, and political interference. By partnering with other agencies and working with a board of trustees, she successfully navigated the complex expectations of a higher education leader—but not without a few missteps along the way. Told with a self-deprecating humor that helped lead to her success, Portrait of a Presidency: Patterns in My Life as President of The College of New Jersey offers insights on leadership that will resonate across industries.
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Terrence MacTaggart long
"Dr. Gitenstein has written a remarkably readable book about the people surrounding a young Jewish girl growing up in the Deep South. It is a warm but thoroughly honest account. This is an unflinchingly courageous story of love, exasperation, argument, and forgiveness. These are the events and people who shaped the woman who would become one of our nation's finest college presidents."
About the Author
Barbara Gitenstein is the author of some 30 academic articles on Jewish-American Literature and academic administration as well as the monograph Apocalyptic Messianism and Jewish-American Poetry. She has made over 100 presentations at literature and academic administrative conferences. She was often interviewed on radio and television stations in New Jersey, focusing on higher education issues. She did not grow up aspiring to be a president of a college, rather she wanted to be a prima donna at the Metropolitan Opera Company.
