Richard J. Helldobler is an American educator and academic administrator who currently serves as the eighth president of William Paterson University in Wayne, New Jersey. He assumed office on July 1, 2018, after serving as interim president of Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago.[1] A trained dancer and theatre director, he was the founding artistic director of CalRep Pennsylvania and The Mon Valley Ballet Theatre at California University of Pennsylvania. As of 2023, he serves as Board Co-Chair of LGBTQ Presidents in Higher Education[2] and is a past member and chair of the board of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities.[3]
Helldobler earned his Ph.D. in theatre and M.A. in speech and theatre from Bowling Green State University, and a bachelor of business administration degree in marketing from the University of Toledo.[1]
- ^ "Biography". www.wpunj.edu. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
- ^ "About Us – LGBTQ Presidents in Higher Education". Retrieved December 12, 2022.
- ^ "AASCU Board of Directors". www.aascu.org. Retrieved August 16, 2021. Helldobler contributed two essays the 2022 book, "LGBTQ Leadership in Higher Education", edited by Raymond E. Crossman and published by Johns Hopkins University Press.