With the calendar marked for the fall of 2001, the date set for the beginning of eCornell’s first courses, the distance learning corporation’s assembly team welcomed its newest members on Monday.
Francis P. Pandolfi took the helm of the organization as president and chief executive officer with Vice Provost Mary J. Sansalone ’86 at his side. Sansalone will assume the roles of vice president and chief academic officer for eCornell following the announcements by eCornell Board of Directors Chairman Peter C. Meinig ’62.
“It is a privilege to have the opportunity to work with Cornell University as it launches its distance learning subsidiary,” Pandolfi told Cornell News Service. “eCornell has tremendous potential to be a leader in online education because of the quality and reputation of its academic programs combined with the use of its cutting-edge technology.”
Pandolfi, a Princeton alumnus and graduate of the Harvard Business School, had been serving as a consultant to the distance learning venture, but his affiliation with the University dates back before the eCornell was borne.
Inge T. Reichenbach, vice president for public affairs and a member of the eCornell board of directors, recalled the contributions Pandolfi made to Cornell during the board’s executive selection process.
“He led an extraordinary strategic planning process for the Laboratory of Ornithology as a volunteer,” she said.
Then, while Sansalone began guiding eCornell toward its inception, University Trustee Edwin H. Morgens ’63 solicited Pandolfi’s involvement for the project, Reichenbach said. The support that eCornell received at the hands of Pandolfi made his subsequent appointment to the leadership of eCornell a logical selection for the board of directors.
Now, as the University’s first distance learning programs are set to come alive within a year, eCornell is “off to a terrific start,” Reichenbach said.
“[Pandolfi] will be able to recruit the rest of his staff very soon,” she added.
During a career that includes extensive service in the government, private and non-profit sectors, Pandolfi served as president and CEO of Times Mirror Magazines and as chief operating officer of the U.S. Forest Service.
Archived article by Matthew Hirsch