Richard M. Freeland

Richard Middleton Freeland (born May 13, 1941 in Orange, New Jersey) was President of Northeastern University from 1996 to 2006^[1] and served as the Commissioner of Higher Education for Massachusetts from 2008 until 2015.^[2]

Freeland grew up in Mountain Lakes, New Jersey and was granted a bachelor's degree in American Studies from Amherst College and a doctorate in American Civilization from the University of Pennsylvania.^[3]

Freeland is married to Elsa Nunez, and has two children.

During Freeland's tenure, Northeastern University went through major institutional changes, including becoming a more selective institution, moving to semesters from quarters, and the opening of over $400 million worth of new facilities.^[4]

Educational positions

• Clark University - Worcester (2007–2009)
  • Mosakowski Professor of Higher Education ^[5]
• University of Massachusetts Boston (1970–1992)
  • Assistant to the President
  • Assistant to the Chancellor
  • Director of the Office of Educational Planning
  • Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences
• City University of New York (1992–1996)
  • Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs
• Northeastern University
  • President (1996–2006)
• Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Department of Higher Education
  • Commissioner of Higher Education (2008–2015)

Other positions

• Vice-Chair, Board of Trustees for the Boston Plan for Excellence
• Director, American Council on Education
• Director, Boston Museum Project
• Director, Boston Private Industry Council
• Director, Globe Newspaper Corporation
• Director, Jobs for Massachusetts
• Governing Board Member, John Adams Innovation Institute
• Member of the Board of Trustees, WGBH
• President, Board of Governors in the World Association of Cooperative Education

Books

• The Truman Doctrine and the Origins of McCarthyism (1972)
• Academia's Golden Age (1992)

References