Celebrating Steven Kaplan

Then & Now

The University of New Haven’s Transformation Under President Steven H. Kaplan

Enrollment has grown more than 65% to over 8,800 undergraduate and graduate students.

65%+

618,679 sq. ft. of new University space has been built.

618,679

First-year applications have quadrupled.

Approximately 375,000 sq. ft. of our campus has been renovated.

375,000

Full-time undergraduate enrollment has doubled.

70,000

Average incoming first-year student GPA has increased from 3.02 to 3.47.

3.47

1,559 students have studied abroad at the Tuscany Campus in Prato, Italy, since 2012.

1,559

Over 40 new academic programs have been launched since 2005.

40+

Since Fall 2004, 88% of full-time faculty were hired under President Kaplan’s administration.

88%

The University has moved up more than 40 spaces in the U.S. News & World Report annual survey since 2017.

40+

2004 to PRESENT DAY

A LEGACY OF SUCCESS

Prominent new physical structures dominate the campus. Dozens of new undergraduate and graduate programs populate our catalogues. Thousands more students are availing themselves of a University of New Haven education, attending after graduation top tier graduate programs or landing important jobs and bringing a compassion for their communities to their expertise in subject matter across multiple disciplines. The University has seen its standing among rating organizations from U.S. News & World Report to the Princeton Review quickly ascend significantly. When we evaluate the University of New Haven today, we know it is a financially strong institution, adaptive to market needs and offering some of the best professional programs in the region. Dr. Kaplan’s foresight in developing an international approach for growing graduate enrollment is having a significant payoff today as graduate programs are seeing record enrollment and helping to offset post-pandemic challenges in the undergraduate market. This is just one of many initiatives Dr. Kaplan has put in place to secure the University’s financial stability.

His fundraising efforts built strong financial support for students in need and financed new academic programs and facilities. Under Dr. Kaplan’s steady hand, the University not only survived but thrived in the aftermath of the Great Recession of 2008 to 2009 and then of the global coronavirus pandemic. Progress on A Bold Path Forward, the University’s five-year strategic plan, is real and gives Charger Nation confidence for the years ahead.

The University of New Haven in 2023 would be unrecognizable to a student, staff, or faculty member from 2004, the year Steven H. Kaplan, Ph.D. became president.

Investing in Our Students: Part of nearly $300 million invested in new construction, infrastructure improvements, and curricular additions over the last decade, the Bergami Center for Science, Technology, and Innovation embodies our University-wide commitment to preparing the next generation of leaders and problem solvers to excel in the careers of the future.

Chancellor Steven H. Kaplan considers the interplay of work and family across his 19+ years as the University of New Haven’s most transformational leader.

BALANCING ACT

CELEBRATING STEVEN KAPLAN

By almost any measure, this is a healthy, robust institution with a bright future thanks to Dr. Kaplan.

Anemone and Steven Kaplan Hall

The renovation of Anemone and Steven Kaplan Hall aims to create a welcoming environment for prospective students that reflects the dynamic, engaging, and pragmatic paths of discovery across the University’s programs and disciplines that uniquely position students for success.

SUPPORT THIS PROJECT

This celebratory timeline reveals the University of New Haven’s incredible growth trajectory across Dr. Steven H. Kaplan’s 19-year presidential tenure and chancellorship.

A Timeline of Success

Then & Now:

OPEN TIMELINE

SHARE YOUR WELL WISHES

The entire University community celebrates the incredible impact made across the University by Dr. Steven H. Kaplan and Mrs. Anemone Schweizer-Kaplan during their nearly two decades of devoted service. On June 30, Dr. Kaplan will officially transition to President Emeritus. Join us in thanking the Kaplans for their dedication and in wishing them well as they enter this new stage in their lives.

SEND A NOTE OF CONGRATULATIONS

Read more reflections from University faculty, administrators, board members, and friends.

"He is relentless. We all hear folks talk about '24-7, 365,' but Steve embodies it, and he expected that from his direct reports. We were going to outwork our competition. When they were sleeping, we would be working to catch them. He established a leadership culture that was addictive, and we all started to believe we could in fact do it." – George S. Synodi

"Steve is a charismatic, driven, strategic, and business- and outcome-focused leader who sees the big picture. He has made revolutionary changes in the University, and it has grown in leaps and bounds in every area." – Ranjana Maitra ’92 MBA

"Steve Kaplan has made the University an important school. He has given his time, insight, intellect, and imagination as few in his position have done in their careers." – Robert Dilenschneider ’12 Hon.

"Steve is unlike any other president in higher education I’ve ever encountered. He is extremely bright and a natural-born businessperson, with natural instincts to make intelligent decisions. You rarely see a university president with those attributes. He elevated the University far greater than anyone could ever have predicted." – Samuel S. Bergami Jr. ’85 EMBA, ’02 Hon

"Steve’s core path has without question been in the long-term best interests of the University, enhancing the institution’s ever-continuing focus on providing excellence to students in their college education." – Philip H. Bartels ’11 Hon.

"Steve’s vision, tenacity, and leadership have enabled the University to grow to new heights, both in its physical presence and its internationally recognized reputation as a center of academic excellence." – Rosa DeLauro ’96 Hon.

The University of New Haven Alumni Magazine reached out to a number of luminaries in Dr. Steven H. Kaplan’s orbit — members of the Board of Governors, a US congresswoman, accomplished faculty, a student leader, campus administration, a presidential colleague, and friends of the Kaplan family — to get their thoughts on the Kaplan years at the University. The result was an outpouring of warmth, insightful observations, and unique perspectives. Here is just a sampling of their reflections on Kaplan’s 19-year tenure as president and chancellor.

Reflections on Leadership

FEATURE STORY

Dr. Kaplan and his wife, Anemone Schweizer-Kaplan ... Then & Now: In 2004, when they celebrated Steve's UNH presidential inauguration and in 2023, when they'll celebrate 45 years of marriage and an exciting next chapter in their life together.

George Synodi, the University’s chief financial officer since 2002, recalls a vintage story about two golfing icons when he was asked to consider Steve Kaplan’s tenure as the University of New Haven’s president and chancellor. The story from IMG founder and chairman Mark McCormack’s 1984 book What They Don’t Teach You at Harvard Business School illustrates for Synodi what defined Kaplan’s success. In the book, McCormack recounts a friendly match between two of the game’s icons. There was no prize money at stake, and the only winner would be a designated charity. Yet, as Synodi tells it, “This was not a tour event, and there wasn’t a purse for the winner.

"But fiercely competitive people are fiercely competitive 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. As the two world-class golfers approached the 18th and final hole of their ‘friendly’ tournament, Gary Player approached McCormack with an exasperated look on his face and complained to him that ‘Jack hasn’t missed a goddamn shot all day, and I have played like s#&t.’ After teeing off first on the 18th hole, Jack Nicklaus then approached McCormack as Player hit his tee shot, complaining that ‘damn Gary Player has played incredibly well, and I can’t get my shots near the green.’

by Doug Whiting

"McCormack looked at the scoreboard. The two were tied after 17 holes of ‘meaningless’ golf. The two were so fiercely competitive that neither believed they were playing well, and yet each thought the other was playing exceptionally well.” “That,” says Synodi, “captures the essence of Steve: fiercely competitive and never believing he has done enough to win.”

READ THE FULL STORY

Anemone and Steven Kaplan Hall

SUPPORT THIS PROJECT

On July 1, Dr. Kaplan officially transitioned to President Emeritus. This commemorative webpage was created to celebrate the incredible impact made across the University by Dr. Steven H. Kaplan and Mrs. Anemone Schweizer-Kaplan during their nearly two decades of devoted service.

JUMP TO:

Legacy of Success

Timeline

Reflections on Leadership

Balancing Act

Share Your Well Wishes

This commemorative website was created with content adapted from the Spring 2023 University of New Haven Alumni Magazine. Click here to see the full magazine.

Interest and enrollment in graduate education is spiking, particularly among international students. The University now receives more than 70,000 applications annually for graduate study in the spring and fall terms.