Thomas F. Coakley
Vice President for Administrative Operations

Facilities operations, facilities construction and planning, human resources, dining services, Brewer Bookstore, conferences, University real estate, and community economic initiatives—they’re all the responsibility of Tom Coakley, who is also president of the University Inn Corporation.

“ I came to St. Lawrence 20 years ago as a visiting lecturer in economics, teaching Introductory Economics, Accounting, Institutional Finance and Investments,” Coakley says. “After a few years in the classroom I was asked to move into administration, first as director of personnel then as assistant vice president for business.” He was named to his current position in 1995.

Coakley says he enjoys “The challenge of being part of a team that plots a course in a more complex world than the for-profit sector. Our mission is far more ambiguous than the profit maximization mission of the private sector, and far more multi-dimensional.”

The job isn’t the only attraction of Coakley’s position. “I appreciate being in my hometown, working through the Canton Initiative to improve the community for both St. Lawrence and the community itself,” he says.

Outside of work, Coakley enjoys watching hockey. His son, Sean ’00, and his niece, Colleen ’02, both played for St. Lawrence. He also serves on the Canton-Potsdam Hospital Board and the Canton College Foundation to maintain community connections for both himself and the University. Arising from his injuries in Vietnam, Coakley is a national board member for the American Board of Certification for Prosthetics and Orthotics Professionals.