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Walter Iwanenko Jr., PhD
President of Ursuline College
Walter Iwanenko Jr. was born in Flushing, N.Y. to immigrant parents from Poland and Ukraine. He graduated from Canisius High School in Buffalo, N.Y. As a first-generation college student, he is a 1993 graduate of the bachelor of science and master of science degrees in occupational therapy from D’Youville College. Dr. Iwanenko began his career at the Erie County Medical Center in Buffalo, N.Y., as a staff occupational therapist working with patients impacted by spinal cord injuries, burns, head trauma, stroke and other cardiovascular disorders. He began teaching as an adjunct instructor at D’Youville College and in 1996 accepted a full-time faculty position.
He advanced through the faculty ranks and earned a Ph.D. in Epidemiology and Community Health from the State University of New York at Buffalo’s School of Medicine in 2003. Additionally, he went on to earn his school administrator certification from State University of New York at Buffalo in 2004. He was a tenured faculty member and served as the chair of the Health Services Administration and Business Departments at D’Youville College. He led the development of several new programs including an undergraduate degree in Health Services Management and a doctoral program in Health Care Administration. He was published in several research journals on the topics of spinal cord rehabilitation, outcomes in subacute settings, chronic fatigue syndrome, and diabetes education.
He has extensive experience in both the areas of forming and the administration of healthcare organizations. In 2000, he founded ChildPro of WNY and Monarch Little Learners Academy in Lackawanna, N.Y. Responding to the need for high quality services in the community, Dr. Iwanenko led the planning and construction of a 14,000-square-foot facility that collectively provided educational and therapeutic services to hundreds of children with special needs while employing about 180 individuals.
In 2011, Dr. Iwanenko accepted a position as the founding dean of Adult and Graduate Studies at Hilbert College. He led the development and implementation of graduate programs in Public Administration and Criminal Justice Administration as well as an undergraduate adult degree completion program. Dr. Iwanenko added several new initiatives, including a graduate student study away program in Budapest, Hungary; a corporate collaboration with Baker Victory Services known as the Residential Administrative Mentoring Program; and Hilbert’s first online graduate degree program in criminal justice administration, a joint cybersecurity degree with St. Bonaventure University.
Dr. Iwanenko was named vice president of Academic Affairs at Gannon University in fall 2016. Since then, he has led community development initiatives, such as the formation of Our West Bayfront, a 501c3 focused on community redevelopment securing more than $1.5 million in funding. Dr. Iwanenko has assisted with the establishment of Gannon University’s Ruskin, Florida, campus with new academic programs in OT, PT, Physician Assistant, Athletic Training, Sports and Exercise Science and Speech Language Pathology. Dr. Iwanenko has also spearheaded several initiatives at Gannon University, including the formation of the Graduate Student Association; the establishment of the Alstadt Environmental Center; and the development of the Institute of Health and Cyber Knowledge (IHACK). He also helped create academic programs in cybersecurity, cyber engineering, and a minor in innovation and creativity.
In Fall 2020, Dr. Iwanenko was named provost and vice president of Student Experience merging academic units with student development and engagement, athletics, academic support services, residence life, mission and ministry, counseling and health centers, recreational and wellness, student accountability, and food service. As provost, he has led the evaluation and redesign of the university’s liberal studies core, first year experience, faculty mentoring program, student employment program, and honors program. In November 2022, Dr. Iwanenko was named the eighth president of Gannon University – a position he began July 1, 2023. In 2024, Dr. Iwanenko received the Distinguished Alumni Award from his Alma Mater D’Youville University and he was recognized as a “Trailblazer in Higher Education” in the state of Pennsylvania. Dr. Iwanenko is currently leading a strategic partnership with Ursuline College in Pepper Pike, Ohio, which would establish the largest system of Catholic Higher Education along Lake Erie.
Dr. Iwanenko has been active in the local community as a youth football coach, parish event chair, and has served on the boards of the Erie Technology Incubator, Our West Bayfront, Saint Vincent Hospital, Erie Regional Chamber of Commerce, Erie Arts and Culture, and the Highmark Health Regional Advisory Board. Dr. Iwanenko is a resident of Erie, Pa., and has been married to his wife, Mary, for 30 years. Together they have three children Alexandria, Ashley, and Erek.
