Hall of Fame
Robert ‘Bob’ Hartwell was named the athletic director at Adelphi University in 1986 and was eventually promoted to Assistant Vice President in 2009. Under his direction, the department and its programs were transformed, enjoying tremendous success on the conference, regional and national levels. During his tenure from 1986-2013, the Adelphi Panthers garnered 10 NCAA Championships, 10 NCAA Regional Championships, over 100 NCAA appearances and countless conference titles.
Hartwell was instrumental in re-establishing the Hall of Fame Ceremony, creating the Panther Club, Janet L. Ficke Golf Outing and Annual Golf Outing and instituting the “Cans for Cancer” Program. During his tenure, he adding women’s volleyball, women’s lacrosse, women’s bowling and field hockey.
Hartwell also played a central role in the upgrade of every athletic facility on campus. On his watch, the university upgraded baseball's William J. Bonomo Memorial Field in 2007, transformed historic Woodruff Hall, designed and constructed the Center for Recreation and Sports and Motamed Field (formerly known as Stiles Field), the practice field and tennis courts in 2008, and most recently, the new Janet L. Ficke Softball Field, which was completed in 2011.
Hartwell received many accolades during his time at Adelphi. In 2002 he was named, Northeast Region Athletic Director of the Year by the National Association of Athletic Directors. In 2005 he was inducted into the Adelphi Athletic Hall of Fame and received the National Pro-Am Achievement Award the same year.
Prior to his time at Adelphi, Hartwell was a member of the Babson College athletic department. In 1975, he led the men's soccer team to a National Championship and in 1978, he took over as Athletic Director -- a position he held for eight years. While in that position, Babson added varsity sports in field hockey, women's soccer, women's swimming and diving and women's volleyball.