In an email addressed to the Fordham community on March 21, University President Tania Tetlow, J.D., announced that Jeffrey Gray, senior vice president for student affairs, has decided to retire at the end of the 2022-23 academic year after 34 years at Fordham University. 

The senior vice president for student affairs arrived at Fordham in 1989 as the assistant dean of students for residential life before becoming dean of student life and later senior student affairs officer. He has also served as a member of the president’s Cabinet for the past 27 years. 

In his current role, Gray has been in charge of leading student affairs functions, staff members and the university’s budget. According to Tetlow, throughout his tenure at Fordham, Gray oversaw the opening of four new residence halls and facilitated growth in the university’s residential population, which has doubled under his tenure. Most recently, Gray led the expansion of the Joseph M. McShane, S.J. Campus Center at Rose Hill and the RamFit centers at both the Lincoln Center and Rose Hill campuses. 

“From comforting countless students and their parents during crises to playing a crucial role in designing our pandemic response, Jeff has always led with his heart and worked to keep our community safe,” Tetlow said.

In fall 2020, Gray facilitated the university’s return to in-person learning during the COVID-19 pandemic by sharing updates and reporting testing, quarantine and health protocols for community members and visitors. This included free testing available for all students, faculty and staff upon returning to campus. 

“Jeff’s leadership skills shined most brightly during the most difficult times at Fordham,” the president said regarding Gray’s handling of the pandemic. 

In addition to helping with the university’s response to COVID-19, Gray has also been in charge of leading conversations with club leaders and faculty. In 2018, the senior vice president for student affairs helped facilitate communications on behalf of the university following controversies about the rights of transgender, gender-nonconforming and intersex individuals on campus. 

Gray previously worked at Western Connecticut State University as the assistant director of housing and at Montclair State University as the assistant director of residential life and housing. Gray is an alum of the State University of New York College at Plattsburgh, and he pursued master’s degrees at Syracuse University and Western Connecticut State.

Tetlow shared that Michele Burris, Gray’s associate vice president, will serve as interim vice president for student affairs while the university conducts a national search to fill the position for the fall.