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Joel Segall, president of Baruch College from 1977 to 1990, passed away on October 9, 2003 at the age of 80. He was the third president of the college, and held the position longer than any other president. Under Segall’s leadership many changes took place that led Baruch College to where it is today.

Segall was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut. He studied at the University of Chicago, where he received an MBA in 1949, an AM in 1952, and later a Ph.D. in Economics in 1956. He taught at the University of Chicago for nearly 20, years and served as the director of doctoral programs.

Under Segall, Baruch’s master plan for the Vertical Campus and the Baruch College Technology Center began. During his presidency, proposals had been announced that would have moved the Baruch campus from its rented buildings in Manhattan to the Brooklyn Navy Yard, but Segall insisted that the school increase in size and remain in the city.

“There was no campus footprint and it’s hard finding space in a high real estate area,” said Ronald Aaron, Vice President for Student Development.

When Segall took over, the school was using buildings on 26th Street, 18th Street and the building at 17 Lexington Avenue known as CCNY South. Both the 26th and 18th Street buildings were rented.

Segall’s insistence that the school have a new location within Manhattan solidified the future of the school in the location where it stands today.

“He had a master plan for Baruch,” said Myrna Chase, Dean of the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences. “New buildings and the building of the library defined the regime under his master plan.”

“His core belief was that a business school didn’t belong in the Brooklyn Navy Yard; it belonged in lower Manhattan,” said Carl Aylman, Director of Student Life.

Segall focused on forging a strong relationship with the student body. Known for his openness with students, he frequently met with students at breakfasts, lunches and dinners. He was also the first president to attend Baruch’s annual leadership training weekend.

“He had a great and dry sense of humor,” said Aylman. “He always had a twinkle in his eye.”

Segall tried to bring in many top faculty members to the school. Among them was Nobel Prize-winning Marketing Professor Harry Markovitz.

“[Segall] was very much a scholar and was very important in improving the quality of the faculty and of the professors,” said Chase.

“He did more in terms of setting a course for the school and setting up the school of business,” said Aylman.

Segall came to Baruch in 1993 for the opening of the BCTC.

Prior to coming to Baruch, Segall served as the deputy assistant secretary of the treasury department from 1970 until 1972,, and later became the deputy under secretary for international affairs in the Department of Labor under President Richard Nixon. Segall is survived by his wife Joan, and his daughter Patricia.

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