Mercy College welcomes new president

Elected in January 2014, Timothy L. Hall began his job as the 12th president of Mercy College on May 13.

“Mercy College’s mission and commitment to student success will remain a priority for me.  I look forward to collaborating with faculty, staff and students to continue the College’s increasing stature and strength,” Hall said on taking over the reins of the private college in Dobbs Ferry.

Hall replaced Concetta M. Stewart, who served as interim president of the college for 10 months.  Stewart has resumed her position as provost and vice president of academic affairs, which she held before  assuming the interim spot.

Before coming to Mercy College, Hall was the president of Austin Peay State University.

According to information provided by Mercy College, under Hall’s leadership, Austin Peay State University saw significant increases in enrollment and funding and received distinctions in 2012 and 2013 as one of the Great Colleges to Work For by The Chronicle of Higher Education.  In fact, in 2013 the Chronicle listed Austin Peay as one of 10 large universities in the country--along with Stanford, Notre Dame and the University of Michigan--on the Honor Roll of Great Colleges to Work For.

Hall supervised the opening in 2008 of the Governor’s School for Computational Physics, a five-week summer residential program for talented high school students. He also cooperated with the local school system in the fall of 2008 to establish the Middle College at Austin Peay State University, a program for high school students who complete both high school and university credits on the campus of Austin Peay. Additionally, Hall oversaw the creation of a Center for Teaching and Learning as well as the University’s expansion through establishing satellite programs and increases in evening, summer and winter term courses.

The institution he currently serves has gained national attention for developing a software program called Degree Compass which uses predictive analytics to provide information to students and their faculty advisors about courses in which they are most likely to be successful.  Leaders including President Barack Obama and Bill Gates have both praised Austin Peay’s innovation in this area, and publications including The New York Times and The Wall Street Journalhave spotlighted the University’s use of technology to support student success.  The institution’s reputation for innovation led to Hall being invited to testify in October before the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee about steps his institution has taken to help more students succeed.

The achievements President Hall’s current institution experienced during his tenure have been built on a foundation of collaborative efforts by faculty, staff and administrators to support the success of students, according to information supplied by Mercy College.  The organization Public Agenda recently released a report titled Seven Practices of Enlightened Leadership in Higher Education:  A Case Study of Austin Peay State University, which praised the institution’s “uncommonly positive and collaborative” environment, and recounted conversations with faculty and staff which “spotlighted high levels of confidence and trust in leadership that they and their colleagues share.”

Prior to joining Austin Peay State University, Hall served as Associate Provost at the University of Mississippi and Executive Director of a capital campaign to raise $50 million for a new law school facility. Other professional roles include Professor of Law at the University of Mississippi School of Law, Visiting Professor at the University of Texas School of Law, litigation associate in private practice and as Judicial Clerk to the Honorable Will Garwood, United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

Hall earned a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy at the University of Houston, followed by graduate work in the Department of Religious Studies at Rice University and earned his Juris Doctorate at the University of Texas School of Law, where he served on the editorial board of the Texas Law Review.