Syracuse University dedicates Quad in honor of former chancellor Kenneth A. Shaw

Syracuse University Chancellor and President Nancy Cantor and the University’s Board of Trustees have dedicated the University’s Quadrangle (“the Quad”) in honor of Chancellor Emeritus Kenneth A. “Buzz” Shaw. To be known as the Kenneth A. Shaw Quadrangle, the recognition reflects Shaw’s transformative role in making Syracuse University into the thriving, high-impact institution it is today. 

This action will be formally announced later today at an event hosted by the Chancellor and Board of Trustees. It comes as Shaw has completed his service as a University Professor at the Whitman School of Management and as he and his wife, Mary Anne, leave the Syracuse area to relocate to the Midwest to be closer to their family. Traditionally, SU has honored its former chancellors by permanently placing their names on significant campus landmarks or buildings. 

“Buzz Shaw’s achievements laid the groundwork for all that we’re doing today, from our strategic investments in signature academic programs and the facilities to house them, to signature engagements with our community,” says Chancellor Cantor.  “To recognize his expansive impact and its centrality to SU—now and into the future—we thought it would be fitting to dedicate the space at the very heart of the University, the central place that connects academic life, student life and athletics, to Buzz.”  

To recognize this honor, pole banners have been installed around the Quad, and planning for a permanent marker, anticipated to be in the area near Hendricks Chapel, is under way. 

Shaw, the University’s 10th chancellor, completed 13 years in that office, retiring in August 2004. Among his major contributions, he led the University through the most comprehensive restructuring process in its history during the early 1990s, while simultaneously implementing initiatives that would improve every facet of campus life. Distinguishing SU as a “student-centered research university,” Shaw’s leadership contributed to a transformed student learning environment with improved facilities, technology and services throughout campus, along with a strong emphasis on teaching and research. 

Shaw’s accomplishments won admiration and recognition throughout higher education. In 2004, he was honored by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE ) District II with its Chief Executive Leadership award, and was recognized by CASE as one of the nation’s top entrepreneurial presidents. 

During his tenure, Shaw served as chair of the Commissioner’s Advisory Council on Higher Education for the New York State Education Department, and on the New York State Governor’s Commission on Education Reform; served on the boards of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, the Council on Independent Colleges and Universities and the American Council on Education; and, locally, served as chairman of the board of the Metropolitan Development Association of Syracuse and Central New York, among other board positions. 

Shaw also played an active leadership role with the NCAA, chairing the Basketball Issues Committee and the Division I Board of Directors. 

The recipient of eight honorary degrees, he is author of “The Successful President: ‘Buzzwords’ on Leadership” (American Council on Education/Oryx Press, 1999), “The Intentional Leader” (Syracuse University Press, 2005) and “The Intentional Leader-2009 Supplement” (Syracuse University Press, 2009), in addition to more than 40 articles and book chapters on leadership and issues in higher education. 

SU’s Quadrangle, commonly known as “the Quad,” is an open green space bounded by Hendricks Chapel, Link Hall, Carnegie Library, Hinds Hall and Huntington Beard Crouse Hall. Designed to be accessible, safe and attractive, it is used extensively by members of the University community and their guests. The Quad is part of a centuries-old tradition in higher education: the provision of a peaceful, open-air area for both thoughtful contemplation and social interaction. SU’s Quad has been part of the campus since the University’s founding in 1870. Once known as the oval and used for football games, it is now the University’s “crossroads” and is the site of many fond memories for generations of alumni, as well as enjoyment for current students.