The State University of New York board of trustees appointed Deborah Flemma Stanley as Oswego's 10th president on Aug. 1, 1997. She was interim president from 1995 to 1997. Before that time, she held the office of vice president for academic affairs and provost and served as executive assistant to the president.

Pledging, in her first months in office, a commitment to a new level of academic excellence for SUNY Oswego, President Stanley forged the course for a truly learner-centered academic environment as a catalyst for campus renewal. Her initiatives have led to innovative programs for first-year students -- including First Choice classes with enrollment capped at 19 for all newly admitted students; a new first-year advisement strategy for each new student; and the Oswego Reading Initiative, a focused experience designed for incoming students, now embraced by the entire campus. 

President Stanley's accomplishments include the Oswego Guarantee covering costs, class sizes, and time-to-degree matters, and an unprecedented merit scholarship program in Oswego Presidential Scholar Awards providing nearly $2 million annually to high-performing high school seniors. SUNY Oswego has grown by almost 1,000 students during her presidency, enrolling greater percentages of highly qualified students who persist in significantly higher rates. Ethnic, racial and international diversity of the college's students and its faculty and staff have also been notably strengthened. New major initiatives include the 2008 opening of a Metro Center in downtown Syracuse to help meet that region's emerging and future educational and workforce needs.

The college is currently seeing the fruits of President Stanley's ambitious campus-wide renewal project. The project, encompassing more than $408 million of renovations, included the October 2006 opening of the Campus Center, the first new building in 35 years. January 2006 saw the college's signature building, Sheldon Hall, reopen to hold classes for the first time in more than 20 years, while a renovated Poucher Hall now serves as the college's humanities center. Previous renewal successes include transforming Rich Hall into a state-of-the-art home of the School of Business, Johnson Hall into a welcoming home of the First-Year Residential Experience and part of Penfield Library into the cozy Lake Effect Cafe. The most recent good news is a $110 million-plus capital project to renovate the college's science facilities and construction already under way on a $40 million townhouse "village" for upper-division students.

Transformation of the college's aging academic and residential spaces requires a similar commitment of leadership and resources, and President Stanley has been responsible for a massive upgrade of campus technological capabilities including upgraded software, equipment and instructional services within academic facilities and residence halls. Wireless laptop environments are now formed across campus along with significantly upgraded "smart" technology in many classrooms.  

President Stanley aligned part of the campus renewal plan with Inspiring Horizons: The Campaign for Oswego -- the college's first comprehensive fundraising campaign. Launched in 2005 with an ambitious goal to raise $17 million dollars, the college greatly exceeded expectations, raising $23,857,114 by June 2008 while generating unprecedented support and new opportunities for current and future generations of students, faculty and scholars. Another important change is the substantial improvement in the institution's ability to attract external contract and grant funding. Both the number of awards and total dollar amount of grants awarded to campus have more than doubled.

A founding member of the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment, President Stanley participates in national, state and local organizations and she makes regular presentations on many contemporary issues in higher education. She has served on the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III Presidents Council and as a Commissioner for the American Council on Education. She is an active member of American Association of State Colleges and Universities Women Presidents group; a founding board member of the New York State Campus Compact; and serves on the board of directors of Alliance Bank and the Metropolitan Development Association. She is also vice president of the Metropolitan Development Foundation of Syracuse.

President Stanley is tenured in Oswego's School of Business. She earned a baccalaureate degree with honors in English and a juris doctor degree from Syracuse University, which presented her its Distinguished Alumni Award in 2000. She is admitted to the practice of law in New York state.

President Stanley is married to attorney Michael J. Stanley and has four children.