Previously chair for the Oswego State communication studies department, Mary Toale has been invited to shift to the President’s Council as executive assistant to President Deborah Stanley.

“As executive assistant to the president, Toale will serve as a member of the president’s leadership team,” Stanley wrote in an email. “She will provide assistance, advice and support, and manage a wide variety of legal matters, personnel activities and confidential assignments, including serving as a member of the President’s United University Professions Labor Management team, and the Affirmative Action Officer of the college.”

Stanley said she chose Toale to become executive assistant because of Toale’s wide experience and dedication to being open and collaborative with others.

“We’re extremely fortunate to have someone like Mary to be able to step into this vital role,” Stanley said. “She brings a breadth of knowledge and understanding of higher education to the position and is truly committed to the success of our students, faculty, administrators and staff.”

Toale joined the university’s faculty in 2014 when she was brought in to create the strategic communication master’s program and teach classes related to the program. Two years later, Stanley named her Faculty Fellow in the President’s Office, the sixth person with this role since its introduction.

“It gave me an opportunity as a faculty member to better understand how everything works on the campus, but also, to provide the faculty voice to the table,” Toale said.

In this position, she sat in on meetings of the President’s Council and worked to help other department chairs with professional development. Additionally, Toale served as interim dean of graduate studies in the spring 2017 semester.

“SUNY Oswego is special because of the shared governance idea, that your voice can be heard whether you’re a student, faculty, administrator; it doesn’t matter,” Toale said. “Your voice is appreciated and heard across the institution so that we can all work together with the same goal.”

Before coming to Oswego, Toale was a faculty member at West Virginia University, Baldwin Wallace University and West Virginia Wesleyan. Out of the three universities, she studied at West Virginia Wesleyan, where she played soccer and softball for the NCAA Div. II school, and West Virginia University, where she coached soccer for the NCAA Div. DI women’s soccer team.

Toale said she has always been on a team in some form or another since she was 5 years old. She took the team mentality and lessons of camaraderie and effective communication and brought them with her as she joined the Oswego State faculty.

“When I got to college, I found out the other goalkeeper that was recruited was a junior transfer who was on the Irish National Women’s Soccer team, and I went ‘Oh my gosh,’” Toale said. “I went to my coach and I said, ‘You know, if I don’t start with goalkeeping, I’m OK. You can put me in somewhere else, coach, I just want to play.’ And that’s how my attitude is altogether… I’m a utility player: I want what’s best for the team because we are all shooting for the same goal, and in this case, it’s student success.”

Howard Gordon, who previously held this position, retired at the beginning of the semester after graduating from Oswego State in 1974 and working at the university for 42 years.

“Howard consistently served as a role model, mentor and voice for students and colleagues across the entire campus, bringing his unwavering commitment to equity and social justice to bear in all his spheres of influence,” Stanley said. “With his insightful analysis and unblinking honesty coupled with respect and compassion, and dedicating enormous amounts of time and energy over and above his ‘day job,’ Howard helped move us forward as an inclusive and connected community.”

Toale said Gordon spent the past month and a half teaching and mentoring her on the position to prepare her for the responsibilities of the job.

“Howard has the true attributes of a mentor and guide: he listens and hears; he focuses his care and concern; he doesn’t judge or dismiss anyone’s needs; he is wise,” Stanley said in a press release.

While the college is searching for someone to officially fill the position of communications department chair, visiting assistant professor for the department Jessica Reeher is acting interim chair.

Photo provided by Wayne Westervelt