

NEW BRUNSWICK — Former Rutgers University President Francis Lawrence, who shepherded the state university into the digital age during a dozen controversial years in office, has died, campus officials said today.

Lawrence died Tuesday at his home in Mount Laurel at age 75, Rutgers officials said in a statement. The cause of his death was not released.

The Rhode Island-born French literature scholar was named Rutgers’ 18th president in 1990 after a long career at Tulane University in New Orleans. He is credited with developing Rutgers’ first long-term strategic plan and overseeing a massive infrastructure project that rewired the university for the internet.

"In many ways, President Lawrence was ahead of his time," said professor and economist Joseph Seneca, who served as Lawrence’s vice president for academic affairs. "Under his leadership, the academic quality of Rutgers grew significantly, the digitization of the university occurred, and the electronic library became a reality, and it remains a powerful research and learning resource for faculty and students who can access data and scholarly journals remotely."

Lawrence will also be remembered for his missteps. In 1995, he was caught on tape saying "disadvantaged" students’ "genetic hereditary background" kept them from scoring high on standardized tests.

The president, who had a good record on civil rights, later apologized and said the statement was a slip of the tongue. But the controversy made national headlines, sparked student protests and could have cost Lawrence his job if the Rutgers Board of Governors didn’t back him.

During his dozen years in office, Lawrence was often criticized by students and professors as being aloof. He survived faculty drives to oust him and calls from Trenton to step down. He eventually announced his resignation in 2002, after then-Gov. James E. McGreevey made it known he wanted new leadership at Rutgers.

Despite the criticism, Lawrence oversaw Rutgers through one its biggest expansions. During his tenure, the university added 53 undergraduate and graduate programs, opened 45 research centers, joined the Big East athletic conference and launched an ambitious $500 million fundraising campaign.

Clement Price, a Rutgers-Newark history professor, said Lawrence was also personally committed to helping increase the university’s racial diversity.

"He prepared Rutgers for a paradigm shift, when most of the freshman class was not white and the student body became very diverse, pluralistic, and the campus heterogeneous," said Price, who co-chaired a campaign to increase Rutgers’ racial diversity. "He also opened opportunities for minorities to join the faculty and was the first president to prepare Rutgers to be of New Jersey, to connect Rutgers to the state’s citizens."

Lawrence earned his bachelor’s degree in French and Spanish from Saint Louis University and a doctorate in French Classical Literature from Tulane. He later became a professor at Tulane and its chief academic officer before Rutgers hired him for its top job.

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Lawrence stepped down as Rutgers president in 2002 and served on the faculty until his retirement in 2012. He also wrote the 2006 book, "Leadership in Higher Education," based on interviews with a dozen university presidents.

Lawrence is survived by his wife of 54 years, Mary Kay; his son, Christopher, and daughters, Naomi and Jennifer, and their spouses. He is also survived by 13 grandchildren and three sisters.

Rutgers officials said details about a memorial service will be announced at a later date.

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