AIC mourns the death of former President Courniotes Dr. Harry. J. Courniotes, long time president of American International College, has died. Courniotes one of the longest-serving college presidents in the United States, retired as president of American International College in 2005, after serving as AIC president for 35 years.
When announcing his retirement, Courniotes said, “AIC has been an integral part of my life for 58 years, since I was hired as an instructor in 1946,” Courniotes told the trustees.
Courniotes joined the AIC faculty in 1946, having ranked first in his graduating class at Boston University and earned his IA (Industrial Administration) and his MBA “with high distinction” from Harvard University Graduate School of Business Administration, where he was a Baker Scholar. He had served in the U.S. Army from 1943 to 1946, as a first lieutenant, prior to joining the faculty at AIC. In 1958, he became the youngest full-time professor in AIC’s history. He became dean of the school of business administration in 1960 and vice president of the College in 1964. Courniotes received honorary doctoral degrees from Western New England College and Holyoke Community College.
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Dr. Courniotes also had a distinguished professional career. He was a certified Public Accountant and a member of the Massachusetts and American Institute Societies of CPAs. Active in community affairs, he had served as a corporator for the Springfield Boys and Girls Club, and the Springfield Library and Museums Association. He was also on the Regional Board of Advisors for the New England Congressional Institute and served as an Executive Committee
member of the Springfield Adult Education Council. He was also a past Advisory Board member for the World Affairs Council.
He received special recognition from many different organizations for his outstanding service to the college and the community including: Outstanding Educator of the year Award by the Massachusetts Society of CPAs; the Henry Butova Memorial Award from the Western Massachusetts Chapter Football Foundation and Hall of Fame; the National Human Relations Award from the Western Massachusetts chapter of the National Conference of Christians and Jews; and the Tree of Life Award from the Jewish National Fund; and the Boys Scouts Distinguished Citizen Award. During Courniotes’ tenure as president, the physical plant of the college expanded eastward by many city blocks. Many new buildings were constructed, including the James J. Shea Library; the Karen Sprague Cultural Arts Center and the Esther B. Griswold Theatre for the Performing Arts; an expanded and fully renovated Schwartz Campus Center and Sokolowski Tower; the Curtis Blake Child Development Center and Courniotes Hall, the health science complex named to honor Harry Courniotes and his wife Annette. On the Edgewood Gardens campus on Roosevelt Avenue, a new gymnasium and a new residence hall complex were constructed during the Courniotes administration. He noted that the college had been quick to adapt to society’s changing needs to offer courses in emerging academic disciplines, such as nursing, physical therapy, occupational therapy, criminal justice, forensic psychology and a doctoral program in educational psychology with a concentration in learning disabilities. “There is a great sense of loyalty among our alumni, and I am happy to see the sons and daughters of some of my former students now enrolled at the college,” Courniotes said. n