By Ella Prieto, Editor-in-Chief
Vice President for Enrollment and Educational Services Robert Schwartz. (Photo provided courtesy of Robert Schwartz)
On the second day of classes for the 2025-26 academic year, Gettysburg College President Bob Iuliano announced that Vice President for Enrollment and Educational Services (EES) Carey Thompson had stepped down from the role after four years. While Thompson’s title may not be easily categorized for many, he oversaw the College’s admissions, financial aid, institutional analysis, intercollegiate athletics and campus recreation. His role as a senior administrator, reporting directly to the President, had a significant influence on the direction of the College.
So, when just two days later, Iuliano shared the appointment of Robert Schwartz ’92 as Gettysburg College’s next Vice President for EES, many in the campus community were surprised. Schwartz, a third-generation Gettysburg College graduate, has not made his career in higher education. He instead centered on transformation and growth strategy through senior executive roles at notable companies such as IBM and AT&T. The College also did not seem to have conducted a national search to fill the position, which is typical for high-ranking positions like Vice President for EES.
However, Schwartz has remained close to his Gettysburg connections—he was a Trustee of the College for the past four-and-a-half years, during which he chaired the EES Committee and served on the Advancement, Audit & Risk, Conservatory, Endowment, and Technology Committees. Iuliano remarked, “His [Schwartz’s] love for this place is unquestioned.”
In a meeting with Schwartz, his love and commitment to the College certainly shone through.
“I am steward of this place, you know?” he said. “And I approach this role [Vice President of EES] with that same feeling…We are but pieces of the chain of continuity since 1832.”
Reflecting on his undergraduate experience—the foundation of his appreciation—Schwartz shared that he was an English major with a theatre minor. His favorite classes were anything taught by American Literature Professor Peter Stitt and Romantic Literature Professor Suzanne Johnson Flynn.
“I’ve always been in love with words…And at that discipline is the sort of core foundation of building and communicating an argument,” he stated. “Those are the things that I’ve used in my career.”
Schwartz also discussed how he remained close to the College despite living in New York City after graduation, and what that has meant for his career. What started as attending College reunions and funding scholarships bloomed into a position on the Board of Trustees, and now a full-time job as a senior administrator.
“What’s remarkable to me is how important each of those things, and how kind of life-altering each of those groups has been for me personally,” he reflected. “If you had told me that, in May 1992, as I was standing out there in a million-degree weather, what was going to happen to me beyond the four years I spent on campus, I would have told you you were crazy. But it has.”
However, what led Schwartz to take on the position of Vice President of EES is what he describes as a matter of following his heart.
“If you let yourself, there comes a point in your journey of life where you have the opportunity and the good fortune of being at a place in your life that allows you to follow your heart, maybe more than you ever have. And that’s what this is.”
Schwartz also responded to the potential anxiety some may feel about his new tenure. He pointed out that Thompson is staying with the College as a consultant for the next year, making the transition as seamless as possible. Moreover, he is surrounded by a “solid team with so many years of experience in understanding the market,” which he considers vitally important. And while his work may not have been with universities or colleges, he handled massive enterprises in an ever-changing global market.
“[My] global experience in changing the largest organizations in the world with the core foundational understanding that exists in the current team is something that is really compelling,” Schwartz stated.
Transitioning to the financial situation of the College, he acknowledged that Gettysburg is currently under pressure, but so is almost every college and university.
“We sit squarely in the kind of upper middle of our weight class, as it relates to endowments in the market we serve,” explained Schwartz. “I think this institution has done a phenomenal job with its financial health, which you measure in two kinds of pictures. The first is endowment size, and we are healthier than a lot of competitors. The second is actual cash in hand, and we have been incredible stewards of our balance sheet and cash position… That is not true for a number of our competitors.”
“Are these challenging times?” he continued. “Absolutely. But I would encourage students to think in this way.”
Schwartz concluded with what he is most excited about in the position, particularly sharing the “Gettysburg Stories” alumni have to tell on the road.
“We have the ways [Gettysburg College] changed our life, and we have a path by which we can see that and evaluate it in a way that crystallizes not just the emotional impact on lives, but also the real-world, return-on-investment impacts.”
As Schwartz settled into his role, he is committed to his goals that are oriented toward the ongoing vitality, health, and success of the College, but also to broadening his understanding of the current campus community.
“If anybody wants to stop me and ask me a question while walking across campus, please do. People already have, and I’ve enjoyed that dialogue a lot.”
This article originally appeared on pages 20-21 of the October 2025 edition of The Gettysburgian’s magazine.
