A St. Lawrence graduate and former administrator will be honored by an
organization of independent colleges and universities.
Allen P. Splete '60, president emeritus of the Council of
Independent Colleges (CIC), has been selected to receive the 16th Annual
Henry Paley Memorial Award from the National Association of Independent
Colleges and Universities (NAICU) in Washington, D.C.
Splete will receive the award from NAICU President David L. Warren, who
will be joined by Cabot Paley, wife of the late Henry Paley, and Harold
Kolenbrander, president emeritus of Mount Union College.
The award was created in 1985, and named in honor of Henry Paley, who
served as president of the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities
in New York from 1975 until 1984. It recognizes an individual who embodies
the spirit of unfailing service toward the students and faculty of
independent higher education. The recipient of this award has set an example for
all who would seek to advance educational opportunity in the United States.
Splete served as CIC's president from 1986 to 2000, the longest tenure
of any CIC president. He joined the organization as executive vice president
in 1985. CIC helps private institutions improve leadership expertise,
educational programs, administrative and financial performance, and
institutional visibility.
"For nearly 15 years, Allen provided CIC with strong and innovative
leadership," said Warren. "He served as the
catalyst for CIC's dramatic growth over the past decade, and raised the
organization's national visibility. Under his stewardship, CIC
experienced dynamic growth, nearly doubling its college and university membership to
a record 472 institutions; initiated several important projects for
education reform; and created cutting-edge training and services to campus leaders
in a quickly changing world."
At CIC, Splete developed and implemented major projects on the academic
workplace, international business, and technology and the liberal arts;
oversaw a number of the council's most significant conferences; and
created a highly successful ongoing project to enhance leadership at
historically black colleges.
Splete raised more than $17 million to support CIC's work during his
tenure, including major grants to support projects on service learning,
college/community partnerships, and an examination of faculty roles in
the context of institutional transformation.
From 1982 until he joined CIC, Splete was president of Westminster
College in Pennsylvania. Prior to Westminster, he served for 12 years as vice
president for academic planning and special projects at St. Lawrence
University, and earlier, held a number of administrative positions at
Syracuse University.
Born in West Carthage, NY, Splete holds a B.A. from St. Lawrence
University, an M.A. from Colgate University, and a doctorate in higher
education administration from Syracuse University.
NAICU serves as the unified national voice of independent higher
education. With nearly 1,000 member institutions and associations, NAICU reflects
the diversity of private nonprofit higher education in the United States.
NAICU members enroll 85 percent of all students attending private
institutions. They include traditional liberal arts colleges, major research
universities, comprehensive universities, church- and faith-related institutions,
historically black colleges, Hispanic-serving institutions, single-sex
colleges, art institutions, and two-year colleges, and schools of law,
medicine, engineering, business, and other professions.