About Me
Jeffrey S. Putman
Dr. Jeffrey Putman was appointed Vice President for Academic & Student Affairs at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University in September 2017. He leads the Division of Student Affairs & serves as Chief Student Affairs Officer, where he provides overall coordination of services for students, & the deputy Chief Academic Officer for the Colleges of Medicine & Nursing, and Schools of Health Professions, Public Health & Graduate Studies. He also serves as a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry.
In addition to his role at Downstate, Dr. Putman serves in leadership roles as Regional Director and Regional Historian for Region II, and a member of the Board of Directors for NASPA: Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education; as Senior Student Affairs Officer Liaison to the Information Technology Knowledge Community for NASPA; as Past-President of the SUNY Council of Senior Student Affairs Officers (served as President from 2019-2021); as President Emeritus and member of the Board of Directors of the Purchase College Alumni Association Inc.; as Doctoral Campus Liaison and member of the Executive Committee of the SUNY Chief Academic Officers Association; and currently serves as Chair of the Alumni Experience Committee of the Teachers College, Columbia University Alumni Council and Alumni Association.
From 2015-2017, Dr. Putman served as the 26th leader and first elected President of the Teachers College, Columbia University Alumni Council and the Teachers College Alumni Association. Over two terms as a member of the Council, he previously chaired the Awards and Recognition, Programs and Resources, and Student Liaison Committees.
He previously served as Vice President for Student Affairs & Dean of Students at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University from February 2013 to September 2017 and as Assistant Dean for Student Affairs from June 2006 - February 2013. Prior to this, Dr. Putman served in multiple Student Affairs roles from May 1996 - June 2006 at Purchase College, SUNY, including Interim Dean of Students and Assistant Dean for Student Affairs & Ombudsperson.
Dr. Putman is the recipient of the Pillar of the Student Affairs Profession Award from the NASPA Foundation (2020), the Scott Goodnight Award for Outstanding Performance as a Dean from Region II of NASPA: Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education (2019), the Outstanding Contribution to the Student Personnel Profession Award from the College Student Personnel Association of New York State (2017), the Mid-Level Student Affairs Professional Award from Region II of NASPA (2007), and the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Professional Service (2001). He was also awarded inaugural Resiliancy Award for Leadership from SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University in May 2023, the Teachers College, Columbia University Alumni Award for Outstanding Service from Teachers College, Columbia University in 2021 and was inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha (AΩA) National Medical Honor Society by the SUNY Downstate Eta Chapter in March 2022 and into the Gold Humanism Honor Society in May 2023.
Prior to his work in Student Affairs, Dr. Putman served as a Legislative Aide for the NYC Council and interned with CBS News – CBS This Morning and with the promotions & news departments of WPLJ-FM, New York City.
Dr. Putman earned his Doctor of Education in Higher & Postsecondary Education in 2011 from Teachers College, Columbia University. His dissertation, sponsored by Dr. Sharon A. McDade, focused on the Student Affairs Pathway to the College/University Presidency. He also was a Teachers College Federal Policy Institute Fellow (2003) and earned a Master of Education (1998) & Master of Arts (1997) in Higher Education Administration from Teachers College, Columbia University and a Bachelor of Arts (Summa Cum Laude - 1996) in Political Science from Purchase College, SUNY. In 1997, he was inducted into Kappa Delta Pi, an international honor society in Education.
In 2013, Dr. Putman was appointed an Official City of New York (@NYCgov) Instagram Photo Ambassador by the City of New York after winning the 2013 #LoveNYC Photo Contest sponsored by the Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment and in 2014 was appointed a #SeeYourCity Social Media Ambassador by NYC & Company, the City of New York's official marketing, tourism and partnership organization. He also holds a Restricted Radiotelephone Operator Permit (FCC License) from the US Federal Communications Commission with he received while serving on the staff of WCDB-Albany.
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(edited August 2024)