Evan S. Dobelle - 
Former President of Trinity College

Advocate for Private-Public Partnerships in Higher Education

 Trinity College

Evan S. Dobelle served as Trinity College’s 18th president from 1995 to July 2001. In Dobelle, who previously had led two institutions of higher education, Trinity found an experienced leader and someone who offered a bold vision for combining two of the things that mean the most to him: the intrinsic value of education and the challenges of building community and living responsibly in a fast-changing world. Under Dobelle’s leadership, Trinity set the standard for excellence in liberal arts education while at the same time served as a national model for linking colleges and universities in innovative partnerships with corporate, cultural, and government institutions.

Dobelle is known as a leading advocate for the liberal arts, a staunch supporter of research and technology, and a passionate advocate of public-private partnerships to spur economic development. He has been honored for his efforts and successes with numerous awards, honorary degrees, and special recognition from service organizations, community-based organizations and advocacy groups, and universities in Hartford and throughout the country.  Dobelle,  a professor of public policy, taught in this field while at Trinity.  He holds bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in education and public policy from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and a master's in public administration at Harvard University.

Under Dobelle’s leadership and with support from key constituencies of the College, Trinity invested significantly in its core mission. Important new academic initiatives were launched, ranging from global learning sites in such places as Cape Town, Kathmandu and Rome, to a new human rights program (the first at an undergraduate college), to an innovative and interdisciplinary program in the arts. In addition, the College has established a Center for the Study of Religion in Public Life, the Trinity Center for Collaborative Teaching and Research, and a new Tutorial College that will give selected sophomores the opportunity to live and study in a dynamic, rigorous, highly personalized academic community led by a small group of senior faculty members. Also during Dobelle’s tenure, Trinity made the Mega-Cities Program its home, linking Trinity to 19 cities throughout the world and thus providing new opportunities for academic pursuits, community service and corporate internships around the world, from Tokyo to Manila to Paris to São Paulo.

All these academic initiatives, and others, were launched as the College began to implement the new strategic plan that Dobelle unveiled on May 16, 1998, the 175th anniversary of the College’s founding. Trinity is forging truly unique academic connections between the campus and the abundant experiential and educational resources of Hartford, building an extended community of learning that will differentiate the College and enhance both teaching and learning. The College’s vision for academic excellence in the next century has inspired such organizations as the Kellogg Foundation to lend significant financial support (in Kellogg’s case over $5 million) that will assure that the vision becomes reality.

In addition to taking steps to assure the College’s academic preeminence, Dobelle made sure the physical plant would meet the highest standards of excellence and support learning, scholarship, and a strong sense of community within a residential college setting well into the 21st century. He presided over the development of Trinity’s latest campus master plan, which was announced in 1997. Within the framework of this 20-year plan, the College currently is embarked on a campus renewal plan that includes, during the first phase, construction of three new residence halls, a new admissions and career services center, and a state-of-the art, $32-million library and learning resource center.

During Dobelle’s tenure at Trinity, the College made great strides on the admissions front. Applications for the Class of '04 set a record for a fifth consecutive year. Since Dobelle took the helm, total applications increased 77% and early-decision applications were up 144%. The College made progress not only in terms of quantity but also, importantly, in terms of quality. For example, combined average SAT scores increased by almost 30 points. Applications from multicultural students increased 39%, and 47% more minorities enrolled in the Class of '03 than enrolled five years previous.

The College successfully completed a $100-million capital campaign ahead of schedule during the Dobelle administration, and fundraising goals were exceeded each year. During this period, alumni participation in annual giving topped 51 percent, putting Trinity in elite company among the nation’s universities and colleges.

Under Dobelle’s leadership Trinity spearheaded a $250-million neighborhood revitalization initiative in a collaboration among the College, three hospitals and Connecticut Public Television. The initiative includes the construction just beyond campus of three new schools and the first Boys and Girls Club in the country to be affiliated with a college or university, and recently announced plans for construction of a new Connecticut History Center, to be designed by world-renowned architect Frank Gehry. The initiative, born at and led by Trinity, continues to draw national attention and unprecedented local support. Hailed as "a visionary college president," in 1996 Dobelle was named "Business Person of the Year" by the Hartford Business Journal for having taken "swift and decisive" action to connect Trinity and its future to the neighborhoods that surround the College’s campus. Trinity’s neighborhood initiative received page-one coverage in The New York Times in 1997. The article described in great depth and detail Dobelle’s "grand vision for the liberal arts college in urban America" and lauded him for setting out "to restore his community to health and his institution to preeminence."

Both the 1998 and 2000 editions of the Time/Princeton Review The Best College for You guide celebrated Trinity College as a "College of the Year." In 1998, retired General Colin Powell, chairman of America’s Promise -- The Alliance for Youth, announced that Trinity was the first "College of Promise" in the country. Powell was at Trinity to participate in the dedication of the first Boys & Girls Club in America to be affiliated with a college or university. "Trinity College’s commitment to improving the quality of life in Hartford and to helping the city’s young people dream and believe that they too might someday attend college and live the American dream is exemplary. I am very pleased that Trinity has responded to the challenge," said Powell at the dedication ceremony.

In 1999, Dobelle was named New Englander of the Year "for his outstanding contributions to the region’s academic community, as well as to the Hartford community through revitalization and economic development projects." "Dr. Dobelle’s vision and energy are producing tremendous results for the Hartford area and the New England region," said James T. Brett, president and chief executive officer of the New England Council, which made the award. Also in 1999, Dobelle was inducted into the Boys & Girls Clubs of America Hall of Fame in Atlanta, Georgia. Roxanne Spillett, the president of Boys & Girls Clubs of America, lauded Dobelle for having "moved mountains." "Your vision and leadership are an inspiration to all. You are lighting the way for others to follow," she said.   In February 2001, the National Child Labor Committee bestowed on Dobelle its Lewis Hine Distinguished Service Award for a his lifelong devotion to the social welfare of children.

President Dobelle pursued a notable career in academia and public service. After serving as the twice-elected Mayor of Pittsfield, MA, while in his twenties, and as the Commissioner of Environmental Management and Natural Resources for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Dobelle was chosen by President Jimmy Carter to be United States Chief of Protocol for the White House and Assistant Secretary of State with the rank of Ambassador at age 31. Prior to assuming his position at Trinity College, Dobelle served as chancellor and president of the nine-campus, 85,000-student City College of San Francisco and before that as president of Middlesex Community College in Lowell, MA, the largest such institution in New England.

During his tenure as president, Dobelle served on the boards of various institutions. Among these volunteer roles, he was chairman of Connecticut Public Television and Radio, chairman of the Hartford Consortium of Higher Education, and member of the boards of the Wadsworth Atheneum, the Harry S. Truman Research Institute at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and the United States Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, CA. He was a corporator of Hartford Hospital, St. Francis Hospital, and the Bushnell Performing Arts Center.  He also served on the Board for International Food and Agricultural Development (BIFAD), which provides advice to the U.S. Agency for International Development Administration on international food issues.

Dobelle has been married for over 30 years to his wife, Kit. A Connecticut native, Kit is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, served as the U.S. Chief of Protocol for two years during the administration of President Jimmy Carter and then Chief of Staff to First Lady, Rosalyn Carter. She, like her husband,  became deeply involved in community affairs. She served on the boards of the Old State House, the Trinity College Child Care Center, the Village for Families and Children, and The World Affairs Council. 

March 2002

President Evan S. Dobelle Addresses the National Press Club,
February 19, 1999