Carmen Ambar Named President of Cedar Crest College

May 2, 2008

Members of the Rutgers Community:

It is with great pride and admiration that I share the news that Carmen Twillie Ambar, associate vice president and dean of Douglass, has accepted the presidency of Cedar Crest College, a liberal arts college for women in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Carmen, who has been at Rutgers since 2002, will begin her tenure at Cedar Crest in August.

Carmen’s achievements at Douglass have been significant. She led efforts to encourage young women to work toward careers in the sciences and math, as well as to pursue global education. Dean Ambar strongly promoted living-learning communities and was responsible for initiatives such as the Middle East Coexistence House and the Human Rights House. She also strengthened alumnae involvement in recruitment and raised the academic profile of Douglass. Under her guidance and inspiration, Douglass women have taken full advantage of the numerous academic and leadership opportunities at Rutgers. Carmen has been a champion of women’s education at Rutgers and nationally, and her accomplishments at Douglass reflect her gift for turning vision into reality in preparing young women for leadership roles across all areas of society. I know she will be an outstanding leader for Cedar Crest College.

While Dean Ambar’s departure will be a major loss, we will honor her legacy by continuing to strengthen Rutgers’ commitment to women’s education and women’s leadership. As one example among many, Douglass Residential College, which she played a leading role in launching last year, is growing in enrollment and gaining interest from students across the nation. As we begin to plan for a search and choose an interim dean in the coming months, Rutgers will be certain to look for candidates who demonstrate the same dedication to women’s education that has made Carmen Ambar such a successful and inspiring leader at Rutgers.

Please join me in congratulating Carmen on a well-deserved appointment and in wishing her well as she accepts this exciting opportunity.

Richard L. McCormick
President
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey