Event Detail

President Donovan C. Moffett (1959)

Dr. Donovan C. Moffett was the fifth president of SUNY Cortland, serving from 1959 to 1963. An Indiana native, Moffett earned degrees in Physical education from DePauw University, Columbia University, and the University of Iowa before teaching teaching and coaching in high schools in Indiana and Ohio. In 1927, Moffett returned to his undergraduate alma mater as a  professor, chair of Physical Education, and Director of Athletics. Moffett worked at DePauw until he was recruited by President Donnal V. Smith for a similar position at Cortland in 1946.

Moffett was the chair of the men’s Physical Education Department and Director of Athletics at Cortland until he replaced Francis Moench ‘16 as the Director of the Health, Physical Education, and Recreation Division (HPER) in 1952. Soon thereafter, Moffett was appointed as Dean of the College from 1954 to 1959. In wake of President Smith’s sudden resignation in 1959,  the College Council recommended the appointment of Moffett as acting president. After serving as acting president for a year and a half, the College Council petitioned the Board of Trustees of the State University to waive the policy that forbade the permanence of acting presidents. The trustees eventually agreed, and Moffett was appointed president in September 1960.

Moffett served as president until his unexpected death in April 1963. Chairperson of the Social Studies department Dr. Ralph Brown eulogized President Moffett in the 1963-64 College Handbook stating, “[Moffett] was one who fostered harmony rather than discord and uncertainty, security rather than doubt and anxiety. Always kind, considerate, generous with both time and encouragement, he endeared himself to students and faculty. He was a man incapable of bitterness or pettiness, a man quietly devoted to constructive policies and plans.” After his death, the college established the Donovan C. Moffett Memorial Trust Fund to provide scholarships to deserving students. In 1967, the college further memorialized President Moffett by renaming the HPER to the Donovan C. Moffett Center. Despite only serving for four years, Moffett was able to solidify the direction of the College in the wake of changes in curriculum, increases in student enrollment, and expansion of the campus from President Smith’s tenure. Moffett set the foundation for Cortland’s continued expansion under the new leadership of Kenneth E. Young.