Profile
Robert Domanski, PhD, is the dean of academic innovation and outcomes at Hunter College, City University of New York. His portfolio includes leading the college’s strategic planning for student post-graduate success, online learning, and an “Innovation in Education” agenda spanning the campus.
Earlier, Domanski served as the director of higher education for the NYC Mayor’s Office of Talent and Workforce Development. As part of the Mayor’s Tech Talent Pipeline industry partnership, Domanski oversaw the “CUNY 2x Tech” initiative – a $30 million investment in CUNY that doubled internship rates and almost doubled full-time employment rates at its partner colleges.
Domanski also oversaw the city’s Tech Academic Council, working with the presidents and provosts of city-based colleges and universities in order to determine how best to align the mayor’s goals with the needs of the city's academic institutions.
Domanski received the prestigious Hayes Prize Award for Public Service during the pandemic, was selected as a John Jay MPA Public Service Fellow, and has won various leadership awards, including being listed among the 2023 Most Respected Professionals in Higher Education.
Domanski’s portfolio also includes prominent roles on recent and pandemic-era projects for city government, including a Universal Broadband Solicitation, securing 50,000 laptops for CUNY students in the emergency migration to virtual learning, launching a PPE online marketplace for COVID-related healthcare equipment, developing a city-wide Economic Recovery Dashboard, supporting the city’s Small Business Loan program, and supporting efforts to help asylum seekers.
Across CUNY, Domanski has supported the development of innovative education initiatives — in partnership with talented faculty and staff — such as the STEM Pedagogy Institute, the Peer-Enhanced Blockchain-Based Learning Environments (PEBBLE) project, the TIQC Blockchain Accelerator, and more. Over the past three years, Domanski also has overseen the development and selection of dozens of faculty and departmental grant awards focused on curriculum innovation, transfer-student remediations, experiential learning, accessibility design, and tech equity.
Earlier, Domanski spent 20 years teaching Computer Science and Political Science at Kean University and CUNY. His academic research focuses on digital government, Internet governance, and the politics of algorithms. He has most recently published on algorithmic bias and Artificial Intelligence from technical, policy, and ethical perspectives. He is active on national and regional accreditation boards and is passionate about removing systemic barriers to careers for all students.