The Wellsville Daily Reporter
ST. BONAVENTURE — St. Bonaventure President Dr. Dennis R. DePerro, whose nearly four-year tenure saw the Franciscan university make significant strides in enrollment, program development and capital initiatives, died Monday after a two-month battle with COVID-19 complications.
DePerro, St. Bonaventure’s 21st president, was 62.
St. Bonaventure announced DePerro’s death with a statement on the university’s website.
“Words simply can’t convey the level of devastation our campus community feels right now,” said Dr. Joseph Zimmer, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs, who was named the university's acting president late last month while DePerro was in recovery. “I know when people die it’s become clichéd to say things like, ‘He was a great leader, but an even better human being,’ and yet, that’s the absolute truth with Dennis. We are heartbroken.”