(Michael Schwartz is donating one hour of his time to the winning bidder.)


Michael Schwartz, President of Cleveland State University, was unanimously selected by the Board of Trustees on November 13, 2001, after serving six months as Interim President. He was formally inaugurated on September 26, 2002. Recently, Dr. Schwartz agreed to serve as President of Cleveland State University through at least June 2008. Recognizing Dr. Schwartz's leadership and accomplishments the Board of Trustees in June 2004 approved a three-year contract extension, effective upon completion of his current contract in June 2005.


The show of support and vote of confidence by the board recognized the forward thinking of President Schwartz as manifested in the vitality of the campus; enriched academic quality with a focus on faculty research and outstanding teaching; the master plan for development of the downtown campus and establishment of extended campuses in Westlake and Solon; the University's new honor's program; adoption of heightened admissions criteria for incoming students; enhanced student service and technology initiatives; and significantly increased scholarship support for deserving students.


Dr. Schwartz came to Cleveland State University from Kent State University, where he is President Emeritus and Professor Emeritus.


Dr. Schwartz is a native Chicagoan who received three degrees from the University of Illinois: the B.S. in psychology (1958), the M.A. in labor and industrial relations (1959) and the Ph.D. in sociology (1962). He began his academic career at Wayne State University, later moved to Indiana University at Bloomington, and then moved to Florida Atlantic University as Chair of the Department of Sociology. He then served as Dean of the College of Social Science at Florida Atlantic before moving to Kent State in 1976 as Vice President for Graduate Studies and Research. Dr. Schwartz served as acting president of the university briefly in 1977, and then as Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs. He was given the title "Provost" in 1980, became President of Kent State University in 1982, and served in that capacity until 1991. He stepped down from the presidency to return to the classroom, teaching graduate courses in higher education administration and statistical methods at Kent State.


Dr. Schwartz has published in the area of the social psychology of adolescent deviant behavior and, with Sheldon Stryker, was the author of the first monograph published by the American Sociological Association in the Arnold and Carolyn Rose Monograph Series. More recently, he has published papers on higher education issues. He has served as a trustee of the Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine and Central State University. He is a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools consultant-evaluator corps and its Accreditation Review Council. He also has served on the Association of Governing Boards' Commission on Strengthening the Academic Presidency, and was named Distinguished Alumnus of the Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana. Youngstown State University awarded him the Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree, and the American Association of State Colleges and Universities has given him its Distinguished Service Award.


Dr. Schwartz is married to Dr. Joanne Rand Schwartz, former Dean of the College and Graduate School of Education at Kent State University. They reside in Shaker Heights.