Welcome to William Paterson University!

I am very honored and proud to serve as this institution’s seventh president. Like any prospective student, I learned as much as I could about the University before classes started. I have met with many wonderful educators, students, alumni, and community leaders, and am convinced that William Paterson, as a leading public university, has a crucial role in preparing students to become successful professionals and citizens. While we are all aware of the economic challenges that face public universities throughout the country, we must all recognize and protect the essential role public higher education plays in New Jersey and the United States. As someone whose education was provided by public universities, I take my responsibilities as the President of William Paterson University very personally.

While we cannot ignore the challenges, we should also celebrate everything that William Paterson does to provide students with an excellent and affordable education and to engage alumni, friends, and the surrounding communities.

Since its founding in 1855, William Paterson University has educated more than 70,000 people from New Jersey and beyond. Today, we provide a challenging, supportive, intellectual environment for more than 11,000 undergraduate and graduate students from 33 states and 38 countries. Students are taught by nearly 400 full- and part-time faculty and an additional 600 professionals in their fields. Our faculty is nationally known for their scholarship, research, and creative works, including 36 who have received prestigious Fulbright awards. The breadth of our more than 250 undergraduate and graduate academic programs which range from liberal arts and sciences to pre-professional and professional programs, offers students the opportunity to experiment with new interests while preparing for careers, advanced graduate education, and lifelong learning. At the same time, an active on-campus social program with residences for approximately 2,600 students provides an opportunity to meet new people and make lifelong friends.

Our mission—to foster student success, academic excellence, diversity, and community outreach—lives and breathes at William Paterson. The commitment to our students can be witnessed daily: in the mentoring relationships students have with faculty, the learning communities that enhance the academic experiences, the internships and extracurricular activities that support education outside the classroom, and the service our students provide to the community. At William Paterson, we help students turn what is possible into what is next.

Located in suburban Wayne, New Jersey on a 370-acre hilly, wooded campus, the University offers the best of all worlds—bordering on High Mountain Preserve, nearly 1,200 acres of wetlands and woodlands, it is just three miles from the historic Great Falls in Paterson yet just 20 miles from the rich cultural, artistic and commercial life of New York City. William Paterson University has something for everyone!

I encourage you to explore our website to learn more about our excellent academic programs and thriving campus.

Kathleen Waldron

President