The Office of the Vice President for Administration has been very busy since Claude Rounds took over, considering his office oversees the facilities on campus (including the work entailed in the recently approved $25 million in capital projects). The vice pres-ident’s office was in use when I had the chance to interview him, so we met in an adjoining office to discuss his career to-date.
Claude Rounds is originally from Troy, NY. “I was born and raised in Troy, and grew up in the neighborhoods adjacent to the campus,” said Rounds. Originally he decided to be a construction management major, so he went on to attend Hudson Valley Community College and earned his associate degree in 1967. While at HVCC, Rounds realized his love for buildings and facilities construction, and went on to attend North Dakota State University for architectural engineering. “[After graduation] I decided I wanted to come back here, to be back in my home town,” stated Rounds, who has remained very involved in the capital district community.
His first job was with the New York State Department of Mental Hygiene. “It was design and construction, but also gave me exposure to facilities management and maintenance,” stated Rounds. After spending several years as a building construction engineer, he went to the Wilton Developmental Center as director of plant operations. “This was a tremendous opportunity for me, because I was still a very young man,” remembered Rounds. “It gave me my first exposure to comprehensive facilities management, and I loved it.”
Although Rounds enjoyed working at Wilton, he was soon tapped to be director of environmental health for Rensselaer County. “I have always been interested in public health engineering, and environmental quality,” he stated. As director of environmental health, Rounds gained knowledge that he believes has served him well over the last twenty years. However, Rounds still favored facilities management and returned to it as director of physical plant and facilities planning at Hudson Valley Community College in 1977. “It gave me a chance to return to facilities management and construction, because Hudson Valley has been involved with a very aggressive construction program,” added Rounds.
In 1979, Rounds moved on to Albany Medical Center, where he became manager of plant operations and later vice president for plant management. “I spent 22 years at the medical center…and my position was eliminated by downsizing,” mentioned Rounds. “While working at Albany Medical Center, I had the opportunity to work with people from Rens-selaer. I had always known a lot about [the Institute], so when I left Albany Med. one of the first places I contacted was RPI,” Rounds continued, stating that he regarded RPI’s facilities management to be a highly stimulating work environment. “I had read excerpts from The Rens-selaer Plan, and that was about the time that the architects for the Biotechnology center were selected.”
Rounds joined Rensselaer in 2001, and continues to work on the challenges of comfort, environment, construction, and community for the Institute. “This position gives me a unique perspective on Rensselaer’s involvement with the community and the Communiversity initiatives. The Rensselaer Plan’s commitment to Communiversity clearly states the university’s understanding and respect for the community,” stated Rounds, who has served the government of his hometown of East Greenbush in a number of capacities, including chair of the planning board. “The members of the President’s cabinet are a pleasure to work with. They understand the importance of supporting each other and the university’s mission,” he added.
In his spare time, Rounds enjoys spending time with his family and traveling with them. He can be reached at roundc@rpi.edu.
