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- TROY - James J. Fitzgibbons, who served as president of Hudson Valley Community College from 1965 through 1979, died Dec. 27. He was 90.
Record, The (Troy, NY) - December 29, 2005Browse Issues
TROY - James J. Fitzgibbons, who served as president of Hudson Valley Community College from 1965 through 1979, died Dec. 27. He was 90.
Fitzgibbons was the second president in the college's history. During his 14-year tenure at the college, Fitzgibbons presided over an impressive period of growth, including the rise of five new buildings on campus and a 4,000 student increase in enrollment.
He transformed HVCC from a largely technical college into a comprehensive community college that offers degrees in business, liberal arts, the health sciences and technologies. The Fitzgibbons Health Technologies Center carries his name.
Fitzgibbons, a Buffalo native, held bachelor's degrees from both Canisius College and the University of Buffalo, a master's degree from Buffalo and a doctorate degree from Syracuse University.
He joined the faculty of the Hudson Valley Technical Insitute in 1954 at the invitation of the first president, Otto Guenther. Both arrived from stints at Erie County Technical Institute.
In an October 1977 Record interview, Fitzgibbons revealed that when he first arrived on campus - then a single brick building in downtown Troy - he was so disheartened by the setting that he nearly drove off without beginning the interview
"I came down to look the place over and I was sure I shouldn't do it - you never saw such a decrepit building," he was quoted as saying. "My wife and I just sat in the car for a long time and looked at it in disbelief. But eventually we did go in and my friend Otto convinced me to accept the job. It was the turning point in my career."
Fitzgibbons's HVCC service was interrupted by four years on the staff of he State Education Department in Albany.
When Fitzgibbons returned in 1965 it was as president of a new, 114-acre campus on the Troy-North Greenbush border.
Fitzgibbons was predeceased by his wife, Helen Murtha Fitzgibbons, after 39 years of marriage; and is survived by his five children, Bernard, Ann, Michael, Thomas and James; six grandchildren; and by his second wife, Virginia Horan Fitzgibbons.
The funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Jan. 2 at Sacred Heart Church at Pawling and Spring avenues in Troy, with a reception to follow at Troy Country Club.
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He was a strong supporter of college athletics, student government and student activities, often presiding over formal student dances, and sitting on the bench during the college's intercollegiate football games. During his tenure, the college's campus was active and vibrant, with a variety of Greek organizations and various activities for the growing student body. In 1979 - six years after the college celebrate its 40th anniversary - Fitzgibbons retired. Ten years later, the Fitzgibbons Health Technologies Center was dedicated in his honor.
According to an article in The Record prior to his inauguration,
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Fitzgibbons was born Feb. 13, 1915 in Buffalo. He received a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Canisius College and a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Buffalo. He received a master's degree in engineering from the University of Buffalo and a doctorate in public administration from the Maxwell Graduate School of Syracuse University. Fitzgibbons also served in the U.S. Naval Reserves from 1942 to 1945, achieving the rank of lieutenant senior grade.
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1915 - 2005 (90 years)
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