Dr. Gerard Rooney holds a doctoral degree from the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy, Higher Education Program, at the University at Buffalo, State University of New York. He was the recipient of the Edwin D. Duryea, Jr. Higher Education Memorial Award. He completed his undergraduate degree in sociology at Villanova University and his master’s degree in educational administration and supervision at Fairfield University. In addition, he received a certificate in Higher Education Leadership from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education’s Institute for Educational Management.

He has over 35 years of experience in higher education and executive administration. He joined St. John Fisher College in 1996 as a member of President Katherine Keough’s senior staff. In addition, he was a member of President Donald Bain’s leadership team, where he served most recently as executive vice president for enrollment, advancement, and planning.

Dr. Rooney launched Fisher’s College Bound program in 2006, a weeklong residential program designed to help low-income, first-generation high school students navigate the college search and selection process. Since its inception, the College Bound Program has served more than 300 students, of which approximately 95 percent planned to attend college. A first-generation student himself, Dr. Rooney is committed to maintaining college access for this population of students.

Dr. Rooney is a member of the board of Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, the Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce, and the National Research Center for College & University Admissions™ (NRCCUA®). He serves as an executive committee member for Goodwill of the Finger Lakes and the Commission on Independent Colleges & Universities in New York. In addition, he serves as a peer evaluator for the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, and previously was a member of the Middle States Regional Council of the College Board.
Prior to becoming president, he taught in the College’s Executive Leadership Program, and was an adjunct assistant professor at the University at Buffalo, teaching graduate coursework in the Higher Education Program.

He and his wife, Susan, reside in Pittsford and have four children, two of whom are alumni of Fisher.

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