December 12, 2022

Dear William Paterson Community,

I am pleased to announce that Kirsten Loewrigkeit will be joining William Paterson as our new Vice President for Finance and Administration and Chief Financial Officer after the New Year. A Certified Public Accountant with extensive experience in the public, private, and not-for-profit sectors, Kirsten comes to us after a decade at Ramapo College, where she served most recently as Chief Financial Officer and Vice President for Fiscal Health, as well as Acting Vice President for Operational & Administrative Integration.

Kirsten’s record of success in the areas of resource allocation and budgeting, strategic business planning, operational and financial analysis, compliance, and audits will serve us well as we deal with the frequently-shifting financial landscape that confronts us and all of higher education. She has a firm understanding of both the financial challenges and opportunities facing public higher education, especially those in New Jersey, and I am confident that she will be of great help as we continue our efforts to put William Paterson on a more sound financial footing that will allow for future growth.

At Ramapo, Kirsten had primary responsibility for the College’s budget and led its finance and operational support units, as well as overseeing a team of 150 employees across capital planning, human resources, environmental health and safety, IT services, and media. Among her many highlights there, she led significant rounds of debt financing and oversaw the timely, on-budget completion of a $44 million capital project during the COVID pandemic. She also provided exceptional financial leadership throughout COVID, which allowed the College to operate over the pandemic’s three years with no net use of reserves. Prior to the Collegewide CFO role, Kirsten served as Comptroller for Institutional Advancement and CFO of the Ramapo College Foundation. 

Before joining Ramapo, Kirsten held increasingly senior audit, accounting, and controller roles at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, in Florham Park, N.J.; in the energy sector; and with Community Education Centers, Inc. of West Caldwell, N.J. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Montclair State University with a B.S. in Business Administration and concentrations in accounting and finance. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA).

Kirsten has deep ties to William Paterson and to Wayne. Her mother, Alice-Jane (Wedlake) Loewrigkeit, is a WP alum, graduating with a degree in early childhood education, and her father, Peter Loewrigkeit, grew up in Wayne and was a member of the first graduating class of Wayne Valley High School. Her brother-in-law, Michael DaSilva, is a Laboratory Technician in the Department of Environmental Science. Kirsten lives in Oakland, N.J. and has two college-age sons.

I want to thank everyone who took the time to meet with Kirsten and provide feedback on her candidacy during the search process, including members of Cabinet, AFT President Sue Tardi, and Chair of the Faculty Senate Wendy Christensen, among others. I also want to thank former Vice President for Administration and Finance Steve Bolyai, who graciously agreed to come out of retirement on an interim basis to provide the kind of steady hand and sound financial guidance that defined his long WP career.

Please join me in welcoming Kirsten to William Paterson when she begins her role on January 16.

On a related note, my weekly update email will be sent at 12:30 p.m. today.