R. Barbara Gitenstein, president of The College of New Jersey, has over 40 years of experience as a college professor and administrator in both the public and private sectors. She came to The College of New Jersey from Drake University where she served as provost and executive vice president. She is the first woman to serve as president of The College of New Jersey in its 160-year history.

Upon her arrival at TCNJ in 1999, Dr. Gitenstein immediately set about enhancing academic rigor and faculty-student engagement, which led to a transformation of the entire undergraduate program. Delivering the highest caliber academic experience has been a consistent theme of her presidency, which is paying dividends for students of the College. The high number who graduate on time, for example, has led to TCNJ being ranked 5th in the nation among all public colleges and universities for having the highest four-year graduation rate.

During her tenure, the College has realized a significant increase in non-state revenue. Alumni giving has nearly doubled, the College's endowment has increased ten-fold.

Under Dr. Gitenstein's leadership, the College has invested more than $380 million in its physical plant. Improvements include six academic buildings, housing for an additional 400 students, and the acquisition of 103 acres of property to add to the central campus of 289 acres.

Dr. Gitenstein began her career in higher education as an assistant professor of English at Central Missouri State University. She held various faculty posts including professor of English and chair of the English department before being appointed associate provost at SUNY-Oswego. Dr. Gitenstein also held the post of acting assistant provost for academic programs with the SUNY December 2016 system while on leave from SUNY-Oswego. In 1992, Dr. Gitenstein was appointed to the position of provost at Drake University.

Currently, Dr. Gitenstein serves on the Board of Directors for the American Council on Education, on the Nominating Committee and Committee on the Undergraduate Experience for the American Association of State Colleges and Universities and serves as an officer on the Executive Committee of the NJ Presidents Council. She is the immediate past chair of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, was a member of the American Council on Education's Task Force on Accreditation and serves on several boards of chambers of commerce.