Seton Hall Magazine Fall/Winter 2019

SETON HALL Fall/Winter 2019

Seton Hall’s 21st President Joseph E. Nyre, Ph.D., brings with him a record of success and a deep understanding of the value of a Catholic education.

EMMY-NOMINATED SPECIAL-EFFECTS MASTER

SETON HALL Fall/Winter 2019

Vol. 30 Issue 2

Seton Hall magazine is published by the Department of Public Relations and Marketing in the Division of University Advancement.

President Joseph E. Nyre, Ph.D. Interim Vice President for University Advancement Matthew Borowick ’89/M.B.A. ’94

features

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Our 21st President

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Out in Front

Associate Vice President for Public Relations and Marketing Dan Kalmanson, M.A.

Joseph E. Nyre, Ph.D., joins the Seton Hall community with a strong commitment to Catholic education.

Elaine Edgcomb ’69 became a pioneer in microfinance after leading the way as Seton Hall’s first female valedictorian.

Director of Publications/ University Editor Pegeen Hopkins, M.S.J. Art Director Ann Antoshak

departments

Copy Editor Kim de Bourbon

2

News & Notes Editors Viannca I. Vélez ’10

4 HALLmarks

Send your comments and suggestions by mail to: Seton Hall magazine, Department of Public Relations and Marketing, 519 South Orange Avenue, South Orange, NJ 07079; by email to shuwriter@shu.edu; or by phone at 973-378-9834.

Photo by Erin Patrice O’Brien Facing page: Bethany Hall. Photo by Earl Richardson

www.shu.edu

From Presidents Hall

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Possibilities

12

Roaming the Hall

Cover: President Joseph E. Nyre, Ph.D.

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International and American students help one another and gain cross-cultural benefits in the iBuddy program.

Finance professor Jennifer Itzkowitz studies behavior in stock-market trading.

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Profile

16

Profile

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Sports at the Hall

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Alumni News & Notes

44

Last Word

10

Daniel Acon ’80 applies campus lessons around the world as a movie special-effects master.

Leadership development program gets big boost from turnaround management pioneer Gerald P. Buccino ’63.

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FROM P R E S ID E N T S H A L L |

J O S E P H E . N Y R E , P H . D.

Great Minds Engaging the World

A

s you read this, I will be nearing the end of my

Growing up in a working-class Catholic community, I

fourth month as Seton Hall’s president. Every

learned that no one accomplishes anything worthwhile

day I am learning more about our outstanding

without the assistance of others. Throughout my years at

Catholic university, the remarkable dedication

a Catholic high school, I was inspired and supported by

of its people, and the myriad strengths that have made it

dedicated individuals who were invested in my success.

a leader in higher education for 163 years.

And I was fortunate to attend universities where a caring

I am filled with excitement and gratitude at the oppor-

community was woven into the fabric of the institution.

tunity to serve as your president. My decision to come to

I recognized these characteristics immediately when I

Seton Hall was guided by the belief that this institution

arrived at Seton Hall.

is ideally suited to creating new standards for what a Catholic university can and should be. Rooted in faith and guided by an unwavering commitment to academic inquiry and civil discourse, we will foster the next generation of great minds by engaging with the great conversations, challenges and debates of our time.

Since my arrival, I have had the pleasure of communicating with alumni and friends from around the corner and around the world. In conversations on the Green

Rooted in faith and guided by an unwavering commitment to academic inquiry and civil discourse, we will foster the next generation of great minds by engaging with the great conversations, challenges and debates of our time.

during Seton Hall Weekend and through letters and emails, you expressed your love for the University and your gratitude for its power to change destinations and transform lives.

You told me about professors who broadened your

one University — a global community where all members are fully invested in each other’s success. From the

perspectives, internships that led to fulfilling careers and

groundskeeper who attends to the beauty of the Green

events that deepened your faith. You told me you miss

to the faculty member who attends to the beauty of the

the beauty of walking across campus and being part of

mind, each of us plays a vital role in helping students

a close-knit community. All of this reaffirmed my belief

thrive and graduate.

that coming to Seton Hall was certainly the right choice for me and my family.

2

With that in mind, our goal is to elevate Seton Hall as

Our identity as one University extends from South Orange to California to Kuala Lumpur and beyond —

SETON HALL MAGAZINE

wherever Setonians live, work and serve. Yet we also

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As our strategic plan takes shape and ultimately

are one University across generations, standing on the

takes flight, I have faith that our community of more

shoulders of our Setonian forebears who nurtured Seton

than 100,000 alumni and friends will help us rise to new

Hall into the singular institution it is today. To recognize

heights. I know Seton Hall graduates do much more than

and advance their achievements, we must remain loyal

show up; they roll up their sleeves and participate in

to three principles: Honor our past, with its legacy and

extraordinary ways to ensure their alma mater’s success.

traditions. Engage fully with our present opportunities

Thanks to your uncommon dedication, we are poised to

and challenges. And build our future with vision and

make even greater strides among the country’s leading

optimism.

institutions of higher learning.

Already we have begun a strategic planning process

As I have said many times since August, thank you for

that will guide our decision-making for the next five

your well-wishes and words of support and encourage-

years. Key to its success is engaging a wide swath of the

ment. This is an exciting time for Seton Hall, and I am

University community. For the remainder of this academ-

ready to work with everyone in the University community

ic year, the voices of Seton Hall will help establish prior-

to guide us through the next great chapter in our long

ities and develop strategies that will further energize the

and storied history. It is an honor to be a part of this im-

great minds that have always been part of our essence.

portant work, and a privilege to call myself a Setonian. n

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HALL m a r k s

In Brief

l Ann Marie Murphy, professor and director of the Center for Emerging Powers and Transnational Trends at the School of Diplomacy and International Relations, was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to conduct research through the Association of Southeast Asian Nations research program.

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l Elizabeth McCrea, professor in the Stillman School of Business, was elected president of the Eastern Academy of Management, a professional organization for management and organization scholars.

l Joyce Strawser, dean of the Stillman School of Business, was elected to the AACSB International Board of Directors. AACSB (American Association of Collegiate Schools of Business) is the world’s largest business education alliance.

l Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology hosted a retreat in July focused on the life and work of St. Catherine of Siena. Nearly 100 people attended the event, led by Donna Orsuto, S.T.D., of the Institute of Spirituality of the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.

l Abe Zakhem of the College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Philosophy and Elizabeth McCrea of the Stillman School of Business Department of Management were awarded the highly competitive National Endowment for the Humanities Connections planning grant. The grant will support the development of a business humanities initiative.

l Moira Kendra, D.N.P. ’17, clinical instructor in the College of Nursing, presented the results of a research project at a national American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST) meeting of pulmonologists. The project, known as the COPD Care Bundle, will help transform the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

SETON HALL MAGAZINE

l The National Association of Broadcasters named WSOU as a finalist for its Marconi Award for Best College Radio Station, one of only five named from the more than 600 college radio stations across the U.S. WSOU won the Marconi Award in 2016. l In April, the College of Communication and the Arts launched a 36-credit, campus-based Master of Arts in Communication program, which offers a choice of two tracks: Communication in Organizations or Digital Communication and Communication Technologies. l Robert Kelchen, assistant professor of higher education, was recognized for his contributions to literature on higher education. He was presented with the Robert P. Huff Golden Quill Award from the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators at its annual convention in June. l Eight nursing students from the Buccino Leadership Institute were top finalists and received awards for their presentation on an invention to innovate hospital call button response times at the annual Pirate’s Pitch and state-wide UpitchNJ competitions. l The Master of Science in Athletic Training program in the School of Health and Medical Sciences received 10 years of continuing accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education in 2019 with zero citations. l Physics professor and department chair Mehmet Sahiner was part of a six-team effort to secure a grant by the Spanish National Research Council. The team also included participants from Northwestern University, University of Tennessee, Germany and Spain. l Mary Landriau, a faculty associate in the undergraduate social work program, was appointed president of the New Jersey Baccalaureate Social Work Education Association. Her two-year term began on July 1. l William Connell, professor of history and Joseph M. and Geraldine C. La Motta Chair in Italian Studies, was recognized as a 2019 Andrew Carnegie Fellow. The fellowship includes a $200,000 grant for research, publishing and writing in the humanities and social sciences.

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BY THE NUMBERS

University Libraries 3.1 million

Scholarship downloads from Institutional Repository

2 million+ Titles in catalog

542,000

Walsh Library visits per year

425,000

Full-text downloads of scholarly articles

26,000

Native American artifacts

3

Interprofessional Health Sciences schools requiring resources

1

Restored edition of “Notes on Virginia”

by Thomas Jefferson, 1787

1

Restored 17th-century “Papal Bull” of Pope Paul V 5

HALL m a r k s

ADMINISTRATION UPDATES Shawna Cooper-Gibson joined

the end of each academic year. More than 80 percent

Seton Hall in October as

of Seton Hall student-athletes have achieved a 3.0 or

vice president of student

higher in each of the last four years to earn BIG EAST

services, coming from Loyola

All-Academic status.

Succeeding Lyons as

University Chicago where she served as assistant pro-

director of athletics and

vost for student academic

recreation is Bryan Felt

services.

’97/M.A. ’05. Most recently serving as director of

Cooper-Gibson will oversee the Academic Resource

athletics at Saint Peter’s

Center, Career Center,

University in Jersey City,

Educational Opportunity Program, Freshman Studies,

New Jersey, he was the

Health Services, Housing and Residence Life, and Public

head of the Pirate Blue

Safety and Security.

Athletic Fund from 2004 to 2017.

Before Loyola, she served as dean of students of the School of Social Services Administration at the

In September 2011, Felt joined Lyons’ senior adminis-

University of Chicago, director of African American

tration as associate athletics director for external

student affairs at Northwestern University, assistant

affairs and was promoted to senior associate athletics

director of student activities at the Massachusetts

director in September 2015.

Institute of Technology, and assistant dean of the School Father Colin Kay, M.D.M. ’04,

of Communication at Loyola.

is the new director of

Cooper-Gibson earned a doctoral degree of education

campus ministry.

from Boston University, a master of education degree

Father Kay had been a

from National Louis University and a bachelor of science

member of the pastoral staff

degree from University of Illinois.

at the Church of Saint Anne Patrick Lyons has been

in Fair Lawn, New Jersey,

promoted to executive vice

since his ordination in 2005.

president for operations and

Most recently he was paro-

chief of staff under Presi-

chial vicar and chaplain to Bergen Catholic High School.

dent Joseph E. Nyre, Ph.D. Lyons, who has been vice president and director of

Columbia University in New York and then enlisting in

athletics and recreation

the Army, where was commissioned a lieutenant and

since 2011, will oversee

served in Germany.

athletics, facilities and operations, human resources, strategy, and the office of the president in his new role.

Lyons has overseen seven BIG EAST Championships, 48 individual BIG EAST titles and 11 NCAA Tournament

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He attended Seton Hall Prep before going off to

He returned to Seton Hall in 1988 to start study in the Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology, where he spent three years before leaving seminary for seven years in monastic life.

He returned to graduate from the Immaculate

appearances. During his tenure student-athletes have set

Conception Seminary School of Theology in 2004, and

a new department grade-point-average record at

was ordained for the Archdiocese of Newark in 2005.

SETON HALL MAGAZINE

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SHU IN THE NEWS “This, I think, will yield a better result for the student-athlete.”

Charles Grantham, Stillman School of Business, HBO’s VICE News, proposing a revenue-sharing trust fund for NCAA players.

“So while I believe that properly structured ‘hot-tubbing’ can be of use, it is not a panacea.

Nor do I know of any other panaceas.”

D. Michael Risinger, School of Law, in an online symposium series of The Washington Post, on the use of forensics in the criminal justice system.

“Never forget national humiliation.”

Zheng Wang, School of Diplomacy and International Relations, NPR, describing China’s mindset in the high-stakes trade war with the U.S.

“Tons of people show up to the ER and are surprised to be sent home without a firm diagnosis. … Our backup plan is to determine if you can be sent home to follow up without a major risk to your health.”

Christopher Hanifin, School of Health and Medical Sciences, HealthFit, on the “40 Secrets the Emergency Room Staff Would Never Tell You.”

“Marvel has always tried to saturate the market with their comics, overwhelming their rival DC, the company that led the way with comic superheroes as far back as the ’30s.”

Christopher Sharrett, College of Communication and the Arts, The Washington Times, on “Avengers: Endgame” and Marvel’s blockbuster media franchise.

“16.9 million. That’s how many students are going to college at the undergraduate level this fall. … It’s a decision that could bring certain rewards – not the least of which is a well-paying job – but it can also come with serious economic consequences.”

Katie Smith, College of Education and Human Services, in “5 Things to Consider Before Taking out a Student Loan,” published everywhere from the Dallas Sun to the Zimbabwe Star and Beijing Bulletin

“That was the response to the gangster crimes of Prohibition, and the attempted assassinations of the period.”

Geoffrey Upton, College of Arts and Sciences, Detroit Free Press, on the Second Amendment “sea change” caused by the National Firearms Act in 1934 and the unanimous Supreme Court finding in favor of the law that developed a “nexus” to a “well-regulated militia.”

Life on Campus, 1870s

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journal written by a Seton Hall College student who graduated in 1874 provides an interesting glimpse into campus life in the 19th century.

The diary of John Erigena Robinson has been acquired by the Monsignor William Noé Field Archives and Special Collections Center, the repository for records documenting the history of the University and the Archdiocese of Newark.

The young Brooklyn man came from an educated background as the son of a man who was a journalist, lawyer and congressman. Although his efforts were not successful during his time on campus, Robinson writes about wanting to start a student newspaper called “The Setonian,” an ambition that didn’t take root until 1924.

Otherwise, Robinson’s diary concerns a college life not all that different from a student today, including worrying about assignments, writing letters to his family and friends, and playing for one of Seton Hall’s first formal baseball teams.

After graduation, Robinson returned home and filled his days playing baseball and meeting friends. When the school year starts that fall without him, he muses in his diary: “First day of September. Tomorrow school opens. I have no fears of the morrow. The noisy Setonia cricket no longer hears my tramp. The boys no longer shake me by the hand. The prefect no longer smiles in anticipation of the sarcasm and the lines he will burden me with. Such is the past. The future is alone known to God. Played ball.”

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HALL m a r k s

Support Grows for Buccino Leadership Institute

T

he Buccino Leadership Institute and three of its

who worked for many years in the insurance industry,

school-based centers have received $7.1 million in

and has honored Gentile and his wife by naming the

donations and estate gifts, including $1.4 million

center The Louis and Vivienne Gentile Arts and Sciences

in scholarship support.

Launched in 2018, the Institute is the first interdisci-

The Henry F. Roman and Maryann Roman Family

plinary undergraduate leadership program of its kind in

Trust donated $1 million to the School of Diplomacy and

the United States. It comprises distinctive leadership cen-

International Relations, which has named its leadership

ters in six schools and colleges at the University that are

center in the couple’s honor. Henry Roman ’54 served

working together to develop the next generation of leaders.

two tours of duty in the Army, and he and his wife shared

The Institute is named in honor of Gerald P. Buccino ‘63, a pioneer in the turnaround management profession

a love of travel and foreign cultures.

The College of Communication and the Arts received

and long-time supporter of the University’s leadership

a $1 million commitment to establish the Lloyd A.

program in the Stillman School of Business. Buccino

McBride Communication and the Arts Leadership

recently committed an additional $2 million in support

Center. McBride ’53 served as a department head and

to the Institute.

chief announcer for Seton Hall’s student radio station,

The additional donations were designated for specific school-based leadership centers.

The College of Arts and Sciences received $1 million from the estate of Louis P. Gentile ’58, an Army veteran

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Leadership Center.

WSOU. He also served as a professor of communication at the University for more than 40 years.

Now in its second year, the institute has doubled in size to more than 160 students.

SETON HALL MAGAZINE

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EXPERT ADVICE

A

School of Diplomacy and International Relations research team met with the White House National Security Council, federal intelligence officers and

the Pentagon recently in Washington, D.C., to share their work on the problem of extremism in the Maghreb region of North Africa.

The students were mentored by Mohamad Mirghahari ’02/M.A. ’04, who as the school’s first Abd el Kader Fellow has been working with U.S. foreign-relations experts and government officials on ways to counter violence and seek peace.

The fellowship and the research team itself are named for an influential Muslim leader from the mid-1800s who promoted tolerance and diplomacy with people of all faiths.

antiradicalization programs, and social-media messaging

Eight graduate diplomacy students made up this

to counter Russian and Chinese influence in Algeria,

year’s team: Erick Agbleke, Patricia Zanini Graca, Michael

Libya, Morocco and Tunisia. The goal would be to keep

Hamilton, Lis Kabashi, Katherine Landes, Shawn McFall,

the U.S. from resorting to traditional military measures

Oluwagbemiga Oyeneye and Edder Zarate.

that might destabilize the region.

The team compiled a report called “U.S. Army Africa

Last year a team of four met with the State Depart-

in the Maghreb: Ensuring Stability and Influence for

ment and Central Intelligence Agency in Washington to

Long-Term Partnerships,” which outlined how the mili-

present ideas on how to negotiate with the Taliban for

tary can use humanitarian assistance, training and

peace in Afghanistan.

When in Rome...

A

group from the Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology (ICSST) made a pilgrimage this summer to the Lay Centre at Foyer Unitas in Rome, a residential Catholic educational institution that is becoming an institute under the school’s umbrella, giving the school a presence in Rome and the center a more established presence in the United States.

Monsignor Joseph R. Reilly, rector/ dean of ICSST, says the “spirit of unity was palpable” during the trip.

“What remains in my heart and mind

about the days in Rome is the level of comfort we all felt — with the coming together of the two institutions and with the two respective communities sharing delicious food, wonderful conversation as well as their experiences of faith,” he says.

The Lay Centre, founded in 1986, gives international people of faith — including those from non-Catholic and non-Christian religions — an opportunity to explore the history and theology of Rome.

“The launch exceeded our expectations, not only in the substance of our

collaboration but in the exceptional enthusiasm of all participants,” said Dianne Traflet, associate dean of Graduate Studies and Administration and senior liaison to the Lay Centre, where she lived and worked while pursuing her doctoral degree in the 1990s.

Joining the one-week trip were Father Renato Bautista, director of formation, and eight seminarians from the Archdiocese of Newark and the New Jersey dioceses of Camden, Metuchen and Paterson.

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PO S S IB IL ITIES |

BOB GILBERT

GETTING TO KNOW YOU

iBUDDIES Chiroshri Bhattacharjee and Jiwon Yoo, two leaders of the cross-cultural iBuddy program.

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International students bond with American students in the iBuddy program — and both benefit.

SETON HALL MAGAZINE

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o have a friend, you must be a friend, as the

University departments to attract freshmen, augmenting

old saying goes. And that has been the positive

the usual recruiting methods of posters, fliers, introduc-

experience of the more than 100 students who

tory get-togethers and word of mouth.

have participated in Seton Hall’s cross-cultural iBuddy program.

The “i” stands for international, and the program was launched in 2016 by counseling

Bhattacharjee notes that iBuddy is also increasing its group events — a new one is “paint nights,” where students are provided with canvases, brushes and instruction. Creating works of art is just a byproduct.

psychology doctoral students in the College of Education

The real intent is to create close bonds through “talking,

and Human Services. The initiative serves two audiences,

laughing and stress-busting.”

explains founder and doctoral student Jiwon Yoo, who

Bhattacharjee, who was born in America, the first-

was once a Korean high-school exchange student in

generation daughter of Indian parents, says what

Redlands, California, and understands being an outsider.

emerges is an understanding of cultural boundaries.

The program helps international students navigate

“The advantage for domestic students — some of whom

both the Seton Hall and U.S. experiences. English as

may never been out of New Jersey — is that they see

a Second Language students have found the program

the world from somebody else’s eyes,” she said. In this

particularly useful, she says. But it also helps American

case, the eyes of good friends.

students broaden their understanding of people and traditions from other lands.

“As a program facilitator, it was really heartening

One such pair of pals was (and remains) Umutesi Ruranga, a master’s student studying professional counseling, and Katarzyna Kierzkowska ’19, who lives

to me to see that the students — both domestic and

in Wrocław, Poland, and completed a bachelor’s degree

international — were learning from each other through

in public relations while taking English lessons.

the struggles and challenges” of mastering a new

Ruranga, who hails from South Orange, found an

environment, says Yoo, “and really became friends

almost instant connection with Kierzkowska: “We

who understood each other and their cultures.”

laughed a lot together and understood each other’s

A key to iBuddy’s success is that students choose whom they want to get to know, based on their interests,

sense of humor effortlessly.”

According to Kierzkowska, who was hosting her friend

notes Pamela Foley, professor emerita of professional

in Poland as this story was written, “We are close friends

psychology and family therapy, who acts as faculty

who love to travel together, talk about our dreams, and

overseer. “I helped clear the path,” she jokes, “and

we make a large effort to keep in contact even when we

then I got out of their way.”

are not close to each other physically.

What evolved is a system that allows students to

“It helped me learn about how students from other

match preferences, ranging from gender and age

parts of the world deal with stress, and how they

to majors and hobbies. The students then work out

plan to reach their academic goals,” Kierzkowska says,

meetings on their own at least twice a month, as well

which proved to be applicable lessons for her wedding-

as attend iBuddy workshops and social events, such

planning business.

as outings, volleyball and pot-luck dinners. “It’s a great Photo by Michael Paras

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way to make a friend,” Yoo says.

Chiroshri Bhattacharjee, the student head of the iBuddy program this year, says she hopes to increase

“The value of this program cannot be put into words,” Ruranga says. “A small choice to attend a meeting and get matched with an iBuddy can truly change your life.” n

the number of participants from the 38 to 40 pairs who have been signing up. Her plan is to work with other

Bob Gilbert is a freelance writer based in Connecticut.

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ROA M IN G T H E H A L L |

CHRISTOPHER HANN

ABCs OF BEHAVIORAL FINANCE Professor Jennifer Itzkowitz studies the effect of behavior on stock-market trading.

J

ennifer Itzkowitz was walking to dinner with her husband one night on Manhattan’s Lower East

set out on an academic foray into a field known as

Side when they came upon an unprepossessing

behavioral finance, determined to gauge for herself just

food shop that would soon change the course of

how rational the average investor really was. “I said I’m

her academic career. The shop was AAA Avoca-

giving this project two weeks,” she recalls. “Six years

dos, and the company name, splashed across the

later, it’s taken over my life.”

green awning in both English and Chinese, got

It’s been a highly productive takeover. Itzkowitz and

Jennifer and Jesse Itzkowitz thinking. Beyond

her collaborators — including her husband, a holder of

the inevitable befuddlement that is bound to descend

Ph.D.s in both cognitive psychology and marketing and

whenever one encounters a store that sells nothing —

senior vice president of behavioral science at Ipsos —

nothing — but avocados, the Itzkowitzes were further

have published three research papers in professional

perplexed: Why would you name your avocado enterprise

journals on different aspects of behavioral finance.

after the first letter of the alphabet, much less three of

Her work has been documented by Time.com, CNN.com,

them? “It was so fascinating,” Jennifer says. “That’s all

Money and NPR. Last spring, after Itzkowitz debuted

we could talk about for dinner.”

a new course on behavioral finance, several students

A few days later, AAA Avocados still on her mind, Jennifer Itzkowitz shared her fascination during a monthly meeting of fellow Seton Hall finance professors.

nominated her to be a Seton Hall “Great Mind of the Week.”

“What I do is study patterns of behavior,” she says.

One of them wondered aloud whether people base their

“The idea of behavioral finance is not that people are

stock picks on such random considerations as a compa-

irrational, but that they are predictably irrational.”

ny’s placement within the alphabet. Within traditional

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Still, her professional curiosity piqued, Itzkowitz

Behavioral finance has evolved as an academic dis-

circles of economic theory, the very notion seemed

cipline only in the past half-century, pioneered by such

nonsensical. Even Itzkowitz thought as much: No way.

out-of-the-box economists — or behavorial economists,

People are rational. The market’s efficient.

as they came to be known — as Daniel Kahneman, Amos

SETON HALL MAGAZINE

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AAA IS FOR AVOCADO Jennifer Itzkowitz at the Manhattan shop whose intriguing name caught her eye.

Tversky and Richard Thaler. (Kahneman received the

Stock Turnover’ until we realized that removing the word

Nobel Prize for Economic Sciences in 2002, Thaler in

‘The’ increased its position when listed alphabetically.”

2017.) “In academia,” Itzkowitz says, “we stand on the

students, all finance majors, among them Anna Fajnorova

ing to make a contribution to that field.”

’19, who was so beguiled by the professor and the topic

In 2016 Itzkowitz and her co-authors — including Jesse

that she asked Itzkowitz if she could assist her on a

Itzkowitz and Scott Rothbort, founder and president

research project. Itzkowitz agreed and put her to work

of LakeView Asset Management — published a research

on a study she’s now undertaking.

paper in Review of Finance titled “ABCs of Trading:

Itzkowitz came away equally enthused about the

Behavioral Biases affect Stock Turnover.” The paper found

course and determined to improve it. “I worked hard on

that investors are more likely to buy and sell stocks with

the class,” she says. “I really thought I connected with

names that begin with A, B and C than with X, Y and Z —

the students. They had advice for how to make the course

that is, early alphabet stocks. “Consistent with this view,”

better. They knew they were my guinea pigs.”

the authors wrote, “we find that early alphabet stocks are

Photo by Michael Paras

Itzkowitz’s course on behavorial finance attracted 27

shoulders of those who come before us, and I’m attempt-

Six years after a humble avocado shop led Itzkowitz

traded more frequently than later alphabet stocks and

on a deep dive into a discipline she had never before

that alphabeticity also affects firm value.”

explored, she shows no sign of relenting. “This still feels

In a footnote that surely dispelled readers of any cliché about humorless academicians, Itzkowitz and her collab-

like the beginning of my behavioral finance journey,” she says. “I’m excited about it.” n

orators wrote: “This paper was originally circulated with the title ‘The ABCs of Trading: Behavioral Biases affect

Christopher Hann is a freelance writer and editor in New Jersey.

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P ROFIL E |

ERIC BUTTERMAN

THE LIFE CINEMATIC Daniel Acon ’80 watches action unfold on the set of “The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou” starring Bill Murray, left.

MOVIE MAGIC Daniel Acon ’80 built a lasting career in special effects — and got his start at Seton Hall.

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SETON HALL MAGAZINE

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he son of a U.S. diplomat, Daniel Acon ’80 met

than $200,000. We blew it up, and, what can I say — it was

famous people growing up, including George

quite fun! We were shooting at a 16th-century courtyard,

H.W. Bush and Henry Kissinger. “It trained me

so we had to be under a certain amount of decibels

to be at ease around anyone,” he says.

because the windows are from hundreds of years ago.”

This has served him well in a film career that

Special effects don’t always pose such serious poten-

has involved working with top directors such

tial consequences, although strict concentration was

as Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese

required to properly pour hundreds of pounds of prune

and developing special effects for films starring Tom

juice onto Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson in Zoolander 2.

Cruise and Julia Roberts.

“We had the mechanical challenge of a soup-like jar that

Acon’s father was stationed in Italy, which was becoming a prime movie location at the end of the

we needed for landing all that juice on them on a moving catwalk,” he says. “The actors couldn’t get enough of it.”

1980s just as Daniel looked to enter the world of film production. With dual citizenship and exposure to both Italian and American culture, Acon became an important resource for many special-effects projects involving multinational crews.

But it started with props.

Acon has been a special-effects coordinator or supervisor on more than a dozen films and was part of two teams nominated for Emmys.

“I was offered the chance to be an onset prop man on, of all things, The Godfather III,” Acon says. “Coppola has a lot to teach, but the most important thing is detail.

why he was drawn to it to begin with. “I love the variety,”

Everything he puts in his scripts, on his sets, everything

he says. “Every shoot is different and I’m always asking

has a meaning.”

myself: Can we give the director more than they expect?”

Acon’s next assignment brought him to the world of

Acon credits Seton Hall as having a major impact on

special effects with Cliffhanger, a 1993 action film star-

him and other students interested in the entertainment

ring Sylvester Stallone. “We shot it pretty much all out in

business, encouraging them to shoot stories. As a commu-

mountaintops. We’d take helicopters out in the morning,

nications major, Acon directed quite a few. He had special-

and the only way back down was with a chopper at

effects opportunities in Seton Hall theater productions,

night,” he says. “Mechanical special effects, snowstorms,

including on Oedipus Rex. “Our teachers were ahead of

wind, anything with a mechanical effect, we did it. I got

their time in that they were willing to trust you to do your

exposed to so much. A perfect place to learn.”

own thing,” he says. “If we weren’t shooting in New York

Acon has been a special-effects coordinator or supervisor on more than a dozen films and was part of two teams nominated for Emmys. A large portion of his work

Photo provided by Daniel Acon

His job brings one surprise after another and it’s

City, it was in Hoboken or somewhere else. They really expanded the idea of where the classroom could be.”

Acon looks back at more than a quarter century in

centers on providing ideas about how an effect should

special effects as an incredible ride, and continues to

unfold, dealing with mechanical engineers and other

be spurred on by the thrills it brings others. “It’s the

highly trained personnel.

excitement, the way it takes you away to another world,”

One of the most celebrated special effects he was involved in took place during Mission Impossible III. “The

he says. “Movies are an escape we all need at times— and I’m lucky to get a front row seat for it.” n

one brought up to me most is probably blowing up the orange Lamborghini near Naples,” Acon laughs. “They sent

Eric Butterman has written for more than 50 publications,

us an empty shell of the car and a real one — worth more

including Glamour and Men’s Journal.

15

P ROFIL E |

MOLLY PETRILLA

THE GIFT OF LEADERSHIP Seton Hall’s leadership development program gets a big boost from turnaround management pioneer Gerald P. Buccino ’63.

G

erald “Jerry” Buccino ’63 was in his sophomore year of high school when he marched into

Established thanks to another gift from Buccino,

the vice principal’s office and requested an

the new four-year program combines leadership devel-

appointment.

opment with preparation in specific competencies across

It wasn’t something students normally

did, but Buccino had important business to

six schools and colleges at the University. “It’s been my dream to take this campus-wide, because I never was

discuss. Every Friday night, his school held a dance with

a believer that leadership is only for the purview of

live music, and every week, the administrators booked

business,” he says. “You need leadership in every facet of

a different band. Buccino had his own band at the time,

life — in politics, in education, in medicine, in research.

and he had an idea.

Even in your personal life.”

On the scheduled day and time, he showed up with

“Leaders create industry, they create technologies,

an agreement he’d drafted for his band to play at the

they create great products,” he continues. “A lot of

dance every week. If the school agreed to hire them for

innovation comes directly from leaders who seek a

the whole year, he’d offer a 20 percent discount.

better way to do things.”

“I’ll never forget the look on his face,” Buccino says,

But in spite of his early business prowess, Buccino

chuckling as he remembers that meeting with his vice

insists he wasn’t born a leader, just as no one is born a

principal. “He goes, ‘Jerry, did you write this? It’s unbeliev-

doctor or a teacher or a professor. He believes leadership

able.’ Then he calls in our principal and says, ‘Look at this!’”

is a skill that can be both taught and learned — and says

And just like that, Buccino had closed his first business deal.

Today Jerry Buccino is considered a visionary in the

he would have loved access to a program like the one he’s helped to build at Seton Hall.

Buccino came to the University in the late 1950s, fresh

turnaround management industry, renowned for both

out of the military and working full time for General

his leadership acumen and his talent for transforming

Motors. He graduated with a degree in business at 25

troubled companies into profitable enterprises. He’s also

years old.

a well-known name at Seton Hall: the donor behind the

16

into the University-wide Buccino Leadership Institute.

“When I look back on my career, everything I have

Stillman School of Business’ Gerald P. Buccino ’63 Center

today began at Seton Hall University,” he says. “I love

for Leadership Development, which has now expanded

Seton Hall and I love the opportunity it gave me.”

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“When I look back at my career, everything I have today began at Seton Hall.

I love Seton Hall and Iove the opportunity it gave me.”

In the years following graduation, he worked his way up in the business world, taking on more leadership

as a mentor to select recipients throughout their time

responsibilities with each role. Buccino says he spent

at Seton Hall, and well beyond. He says alumni who are

his late 20s and early 30s learning to lead mostly by

now in their late 30s and early 40s still call him up for

watching what the people around him did right — and

career guidance or just to check in.

also where they went wrong.

“Leadership is about doing, not talking,” he says. “It’s about passion and taking risks and not fearing failure,

“These young people have given me a real gift of having them in my life,” he says.

Growing up modestly in North Jersey, the son of a

and it comes in all different packages and shapes. There

grocery store owner and a homemaker, Buccino says

are leaders who can get up and sound good but who

even he didn’t foresee his evolution from confident teen

have no substance. Then you can have a guy working in

musician to business luminary.

a garage who develops Microsoft.”

Photo by Michael Goss

providing financial support, Buccino personally serves

Buccino reconnected with Seton Hall in the early

“I never imagined as a young boy that I would ever be in a position to do these things,” he says of his continued

1990s, about a decade after he’d founded his turnaround

support of Seton Hall. “It’s been a wonderful journey. I

firm, Buccino & Associates Inc. In 1996, he created

pinch myself sometimes.” n

an endowed scholarship for students in the Stillman School’s Center for Leadership Studies. In addition to

Molly Petrilla is a freelance writer based in New Jersey.

17

A FIRST Father Matthew Pawlikowski, M.D.M. ’98 is the first Catholic priest LOCATION MATTERS to serve as the President Nyre speaks senior chaplain often about "the power of at West Point. place to transform lives."

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Seton Hall University’s

TWENTY-FIRST PRESIDENT Ú

Joseph E. Nyre, Ph.D., brings to Seton Hall a record of success in elevating institutions along with a deep understanding of the value of a Catholic education.

A

s Seton Hall’s first-year

students navigated tentative paths through the lunchtime dining hall on their first full day on campus this fall, a man in a suit threaded among them, carrying his own tray and greeting everyone he passed.

“How are you doing?” Joseph Nyre asked one student after another.

“What’s your name? Where are you from? How do you like your residence hall?”

Just as it was all new to them, so was it new to him too, a month into

Photos by Erin Patrice O'Brien

his term as Seton Hall University’s 21st president. “I try to greet as many students as possible,” he said.

It is a habit of the Midwest, where he was raised and where unsolicited greetings are much more common than they are in the Northeast. But it is also a management style he brought with him from his previous job as president of Iona College, a Roman Catholic institution in New Rochelle, New York.

19 23 2

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One of Nyre’s mantras is, “listen, learn, then lead.” If you have a president who comes in on day one and tells

believed a Catholic education would change his destiny.

you, “this is how it’s going to be” — that’s a problem, he

So the Nyre family stretched and struggled, and with

said. “Because there are many people walking around

the help of an uncle, found a way to pay his tuition at

this university who know much more about it than I do.”

Beloit Catholic High School.

A specific set of beliefs guide how Nyre spends much

“Catholic school saved my life,” Nyre said. His stutter

of his time. “I believe thoroughly in shared governance,

faded, and his grades rose. “It was a fresh start with

which is unique to higher education. I believe in our

people who believed in me.”

ability to plan and pull in the same direction to govern

To go to college — he was the first in his family to

collectively. I also believe that university leadership

make that journey — he enlisted and served in the Navy.

must be engaged in learning about and in advancing the

“Frankly, I did it because of the GI Bill. I saw it as a

student experience, supporting academic and capital

wonderful pathway to college,” he said. “I thought it

planning, and encouraging alumni to re-experience their

might be the only path.”

alma mater.”

At the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse he delivered

Nyre was a prominent child psychologist before

pizzas, waited tables, sold men’s suits, worked one

becoming a college president, and he is accustomed to

summer in a steel mill — and found his career path

asking questions. “Psychologists are trained to measure

majoring in psychology. After earning a master’s degree

aspects of life that historically are difficult to measure,”

at the University of Missouri, he joined the doctoral

he said. “I like to think that I still use it every day, in

program at University of Kansas, where he met his wife.

leading and in serving.”

He and the former Kelli McIntyre have been married

Some of the questions Nyre asks are simple.

“How’s the mac and cheese?” he asked one student, contemplating what to add to his lunch tray. “I heard it was pretty good.”

But many are harder, and it was not always easy

24 years and have four children: Hadley, Henry, Charlie and Evelyn.

At the same time, Nyre found a cause. “The more I learned about cognition and childhood disorders, the more it resonated with me, for not only my personal

for him to ask them — to say anything at all, in fact —

life but for how our system of care supports or may

out loud.

not support people,” he said. Ú

He had a cousin with Down syndrome who lived in a small town in Northern Wisconsin where everyone looked out for her. “Growing up, I thought that was how

“I would pray each night that I would not be called on

the world worked — that we take care of each other,”

at school,” Nyre said about the stutter that plagued

he said. “And it wasn’t until I learned more about our

him as a boy in a blue-collar part of Beloit in southern

country and our system of care that I realized that’s

Wisconsin. He wouldn’t ask his teachers a question if

not the case everywhere.”

he didn’t understand something, and when called on to read out loud in class, he couldn’t.

The public school wasn’t serving him, and a Catholic

3 20

adamant about the importance of education, and she

It wasn’t how the schools were working in Lawrence, Kansas, where he served as a school psychologist while studying for his doctorate, and where Kelli taught

school education seemed out of reach. His mother, the

kindergarten through second grade. “He came and said,

oldest of nine, had grown up working on her family’s

‘We’ve got a serious problem in the school district — and

farm, and his father worked in maintenance for 30 years

in our country. We’re not serving these children well. We

at the same Wisconsin dairy plant. Nyre’s mother was

need to find more innovative, effective ways of treating

SETON HALL MAGAZINE

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THE NYRES Joseph E. Nyre and the former Kelli McIntyre have been married for 24 years.

them,’” said Michael Roberts, emeritus professor in

to organize, how to get people on board,” Roberts said.

the Clinical Child Psychology Program at the University

“You can just track it through time and can see all the

of Kansas.

times where he stood out for knowing what needed to

They designed what they called the Intensive Mental Help Program — where specially trained teachers, psychology graduate students and paraprofessionals

be done and identifying the people that he could bring to the table to do it.”

The program and its interventions became a

worked with emotionally disturbed children whose

national model, garnering significant grant funding

behavior had led to them being ejected from school, even

and producing research papers still often quoted

hospitalized. It took just two months for Nyre’s idea

in child psychology books and articles. “Joe believes

to move from planning meetings to the classroom. The

in the power of places and people to change

results were immediate.

destinations,” Roberts said.

“What caught my eye was not only that he cared about the children in the school district, but he also knew how

Nyre rose quickly in the field: two fellowships at Harvard Medical School, an offer of tenure after

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just a single year at Baylor University, and the presidency of the Hope Institute for Children and Families in Springfield, Illinois, a nonprofit dedicated to educating, treating and caring for children with autism spectrum disorders and other developmental disabilities. “I knew that Hope had played a significant role in establishing President Kennedy’s disability policy, which grew to become the current system of care for children with disabilities. I thought I could accelerate my impact there,” he said.

Two weeks after he started at Hope, the organization’s finances unraveled. But with time, hard work and a strong board, the situation eventually turned around.

Nyre expanded Hope’s university affiliations and its reach throughout the state. “We changed its business model so it wasn’t just providing direct services to children. It began to unite universities and social-service agencies across Illinois to train pre-service teachers, practitioners and physicians on best practices. There

may not know how much money he [raised] or how many

was less focus on residential care and more focus on how

buildings were built, but they know Dr. Nyre as the

to help people earlier,” he said. “We went from serving

president who ate in our dining hall and who was at

100 children to 30,000 people a year.”

Mass with us on Sunday.”

Nyre’s time at Hope showed he had the skills to lead

of Nyre’s track record at Iona is Patrick C. Dunican Jr.

with, and he offered himself as a candidate for a college

He believes “Seton Hall could not have made a better

presidency. Iona College recruited him as its first lay

selection.”

president in 2011.

As with Hope, Nyre’s early days at Iona brought a

Dunican, the chairman and managing director of Newark-based law firm Gibbons P.C., said that Nyre

series of unexpected challenges that tested his resolve

“will lead the University to new, never-before-imagined

— and the spirit of the institution. “Life is about how

success. He was marvelous for Iona and will be

you show up on your hardest days,” he said. “Either you

incredible for Seton Hall.” Dunican has perspective on

turn up your nose, or you roll up your sleeves. Sometimes

both schools: He earned his bachelor’s degree at Iona

challenges will rip a family or community apart, and

— where he serves on the Board of Legal Trustees —

other times it will unify them. They unified the Iona

and his law degree at Seton Hall, where he is former

alumni base and the faculty and staff.”

chairman of the law school’s Board of Visitors.

In Nyre’s eight years at Iona, the endowment tripled,

22 5

One person who does know quite well the specifics

a higher education institution like the ones he worked

Seton Hall is almost three times the size of Iona, but

and the school expanded both the campus itself and

its endowment is not, and increasing the endowment is

its academic offerings. “The school looked completely

a job Dunican thinks Nyre will be especially adept at.

different from when I started as a first year,” said Erin

“To get [significant] gifts over the line, that takes a lot of

Kutch, a former Iona student who was president of the

skill,” he said, citing what he called Nyre’s “unparalleled”

student government association as a senior. “Students

record at Iona. “I think he taps into what motivates the

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Nyre believes Seton Hall has

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All four of the Nyre children attend Catholic schools.

a responsibility to foster great

“I saw what a Catholic education did for my husband, how

minds by engaging in the great

potential,” Kelli Nyre said. “Even with great public schools

conversations, challenges and

everywhere we’ve lived, I like the environment in the

debates of today's global society.

education is a wonderful place to live.”

it helped him to reach the place he is today and realize his

Catholic schools. We believe the intersection of faith and

Ú

Catholic institution is one Nyre feels deeply. “The highest

person he’s dealing with. He has extraordinarily high

form of service for a lay leader is to lead at a Catholic

emotional intelligence.”

institution,” he said. “My excitement in joining Seton Hall

The responsibility of serving as president of a

Nyre arrives at Seton Hall at what he calls a “liminal

is filled with a tremendous sense of appreciation for the

moment” in higher education, when private schools are

deep Catholic foundation and rich history the University

especially vulnerable. “The enrollment demographics

enjoys. I’m incredibly grateful for the warm welcome the

in the Northeast are more than troubling, and the feeder

Seton Hall community has given me, especially the priest

system of Catholic high schools is struggling,” he said.

community and His Eminence, Cardinal Tobin.”

“The number of closures, mergers and acquisitions will

Nyre didn’t officially start as president of Seton Hall

accelerate and be significant. Some have argued that

until August 1, but he had so much to do in July that he

either you’re acquiring or you’re going to be acquired.”

ended up canceling a planned family RV trip to several

Thanks to a strong foundation and the work of

national parks in the West. A few days after delivering

many, Nyre’s initial first-year class, 1,615 students, is

his eldest daughter to her first year of college, he joined

the largest in Seton Hall’s history. “I believe thoroughly

his wife and their three younger children in helping the

in the power of this place to transform lives,” he said,

Seton Hall first-year students move into the residence

invoking the University’s tagline, “What Great Minds

halls on campus. “Having just gone through it, I could

Can Do.”

relate to all these parents dropping off their kids,” Kelli

Yet for Nyre, it is more than a tagline. He believes Seton Hall has a responsibility to foster great minds by engaging in the great conversations, challenges and

Nyre said. “I was able to tell one tearful mom ‘it’s going to be OK,’ and gave her a big hug.”

Upper-class students moved in the next day, and

debates of today’s global society. “I believe the great

after Nyre’s lunch in the dining hall he walked across

debates and challenges of society will either emanate

the Green, greeting more students. “I knew the names of

from a university campus or they will quickly find their

the presidents at the schools I attended, but I couldn’t

way there,” he said.

pick them out walking across campus,” he said. “I think

So this fall the University is launching a series of

something unique about Seton Hall is that we should

events — called the Great Minds Dialogues — that

know who’s who, and we shouldn’t have artificial

will allow students to participate in civil, reasoned

barriers in place. By Christmas maybe some of them

conversations while examining pressing questions

will know who I am.”

and issues. Through lectures, discussions and panels,

Sitting on the steps of Jubilee Hall was a gaggle of

students will broaden their perspectives by sharing

first years, waiting for their peer adviser to shepherd

their ideas and seeing the world as other people see it.

them to yet another activity meant to acclimate them to

“I think that speaks to what higher education, particularly Catholic higher education, can mean,” he said.

their new home. “How are you doing?” Nyre asked them.

“Where are you headed next?” n

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MOLLY PETRILLA

OUT IN FRONT

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Seton Hall’s first female valedictorian, Elaine Lardieri Edgcomb ’69, went on to become a pioneer in microfinance.

F

ifty years ago, on a bright morning in early

previously been locked to women, just as it wasn’t the

June, Elaine Lardieri stood on Seton Hall’s

last time she considered the “content of her soul” and

commencement stage and addressed the

prioritized helping others. Though no one in the audience

Class of 1969 and their families.

It was a landmark moment for her, of course, but also

knew it yet, the woman quoting “Renascence” to them would go on to blaze new trails everywhere she went —

for the University at large: after 113 years in existence,

starting with high-level international work for Catholic

the school had its first female valedictorian.

Relief Services (CRS) and continuing into the earliest

It’s been long enough now that she doesn’t remember

days of microfinance and microenterprise.

exactly how she found out she’d landed the honor. Long enough that she can’t find a copy of her valedictory

When Elaine Lardieri arrived on campus in the fall

speech. But she can still remember looking into the front

of 1965, there weren’t many students like her. “She

row and seeing her family beaming up at her, and her

was something very new to Seton Hall,” says her friend

boyfriend Paul Edgcomb ’68/M.A.’71, still a few years

Bob Windrem ’68. “She was a woman on campus.”

away from becoming her husband, snapping away on his little Kodak Instamatic camera.

Elaine Edgcomb ’69 is certain that at some point

At the start of her sophomore year, just 22 women were enrolled on the South Orange campus — scattered in among 2,655 men. (Those numbers changed signifi-

in her speech, she quoted this passage from Edna St.

cantly in early 1968, her junior year, when South Orange

Vincent Millay’s poem, “Renascence”:

went fully co-ed after Seton Hall closed its satellite campuses in Newark and Jersey City.)

“The world stands out on either side

Born and raised in Newark, she lived so close

No wider than the heart is wide;

to Seton Hall that she could easily walk to campus.

Above the world is stretched the sky, —

Her father drove for the United Parcel Service and

No higher than the soul is high.”

her mother worked in the Newark Public Library.

Photo by Michael Paras

Neither had gone to college, so it was a jubilant moment In those lines, she wanted to tell her classmates that

for the whole family when she enrolled in Seton Hall’s

their success wouldn’t depend only on their knowledge,

Humanities Honors Program (HHP) — one of the

but also on “the content of our souls and how we opened

few programs open to women at that time — on a

ourselves up to others,” she says now.

full scholarship.

That sunny June morning wasn’t the last time Edgcomb would burst through a door that had

HHP students studied Western history and culture through interdisciplinary courses that wove literature,

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music, dance and other fine arts into the history of

it was her mission to help anyone who needed it

each time period. “It’s something she’s carried with

the best she could.

her for her whole life,” her husband, Paul, says of

In the days after the quake, Edgcomb and her

the program’s approach. “If we go to an opera, she’s

co-workers quickly began to organize disaster relief,

going to read the libretto and learn the history behind

setting up flights into the country with food, clothing,

it. The same thing with a piece of art or a poem. She

medications and plastic tarps.

comes at it from all angles.”

Founded in 1943 by the U.S. Conference of Catholic

Edgcomb also found herself drawn to Latin

Bishops to assist World War II survivors in Europe, CRS

America. A double major in history and Spanish,

had grown into a multi-continent source of humanitarian

she remembers taking a course

assistance, disaster aid and

on Latin American history that

socioeconomic development pro-

covered popular movements

grams by the time Edgcomb went to

and “the continuing efforts by

work there in 1971. She started out

the poor to improve their lives,”

as a development assistant, fresh

she says. That course is what

out of Georgetown University’s

sparked everything that followed:

master’s program in Latin Ameri-

graduate school, her years at

can studies, but soon she joined a

CRS and, eventually, her work

new crop of CRS women who were

in microfinance.

choosing international fieldwork over domestic desk jobs.

Guatemala, 1976

By the time she left CRS in1981,

In the middle of the night on Feb. 4,

Edgcomb was directing the agency’s

1976, Elaine Edgcomb was shaken

development and relief programs

awake in Guatemala City. “I knew

across 13 countries in Central Amer-

it was an earthquake the minute it

ica and the Caribbean. She spent

started rumbling,” she says now.

more than a quarter of each year

As the rattling continued, all she could do was sit in

traveling in those regions, working on an ever-evolving

bed, waiting for it to stop, wondering whether she would

slate of projects that ranged from agricultural develop-

survive and thinking about her family back home in the

ment to carving out leadership development opportunities.

United States.

When the jostling stopped, Edgcomb crawled out

“Underlying all of the work was the recognition that people were poor not because of defects of their char-

of bed and found the co-worker she was staying with.

acter,” she says, “but because of structures and political

They spent the rest of that night in a car together —

systems that excluded them or extracted more value

the safest place to go, they’d been told — as aftershocks

from them than they gave in return.”

rocked the country.

Later it would emerge that 23,000 people had died from that earthquake, more than a billion dollars

The term microfinance was still a full decade away from

of damage had occurred, and almost a sixth of Guate-

appearing in print when, in 1985, Edgcomb helped found

mala’s population had been left homeless. But she

a network dedicated to its ideas.

didn’t know any of that yet. She just knew that as an assistant regional director for Catholic Relief Services,

3 26

All Over the World, 1985

She was intrigued by the new strategy of arranging small loans for people in developing countries who

SETON HALL MAGAZINE

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had no credit or assets — and who often worked

Metuchen, New Jersey, 2019

outside the formal sector in “microenterprises” like

It’s hard not to spot the obvious theme running through

street vending or artisan craftsmanship — in order to

Edgcomb’s résumé: she has a habit of getting to things

help them grow their businesses and better support

early, whether it’s as one of few women on the Seton Hall

their families.

campus, one of few women working in the field for CRS,

What began as a one-year exploratory project

one of few people connecting international microfinance

became the Small Enterprise Education and Promotion

efforts, or one of few people considering the promise of

(SEEP) Network, a nonprofit that still exists today.

microenterprise in our own country.

With Edgcomb at its helm, SEEP connected U.S.-based

But Edgcomb, who’s now enjoying retired life with

nonprofits that were all working in international

Paul in Metuchen, New Jersey, suggests a second

microenterprise development and microfinance.

connection. “Throughout my career, what was important

“We became the venue for people to share their

to me was how one achieved greater social and economic

experiences, identify best practices and develop tools

development and equity for people who had less than

that would help people all around the world,” she

we had,” she says. (It’s a philosophy the Edgcomb

says. The network included just 25 organizations at

children also absorbed. Lauren, J.D. ‘07 and David have

first. Today it consists of several hundred nonprofits

both found ways to help those who are struggling:

in 150 countries.

David as a Peace Corps volunteer in Panama; Lauren

After 13 years running SEEP, Edgcomb turned her focus closer to home. In 1998, she joined The Aspen Institute and helped start FIELD — an initiative

as a bankruptcy attorney who serves clients in economic and financial distress.)

Edgcomb says it all goes back to her faith — specifi-

designed to test, evaluate and document innovative

cally, the Catholic social doctrine, which “influenced

approaches to helping disadvantaged entrepreneurs

me greatly.” She notes that “the role of Christians is to

escape poverty and create jobs.

She watched with amazement as the landscape expanded from a handful of U.S.-focused microenterprise programs when she started to well over 400. “[FIELD] has in many ways been the leading source

seek justice and opportunity for those who have been excluded.”

Because of the time in which she was working, microfinance and microenterprise became her tools-ofchoice to reach that goal. “And I think we made some

of knowledge-building and expertise for the U.S.

progress and helped some people improve their lives,”

microenterprise development field,” says Joyce Klein,

Edgcomb says, “but clearly, there is so much more to do.”

who worked with Edgcomb on FIELD starting in 1998

“When you look back at your life, it almost seems

and took over as its director in 2012. “That was very

like a movie that had to flow the way it did,” she adds,

much because of Elaine’s leadership and the knowledge,

thinking back to her undergraduate days and that

expertise and commitment that she brought to that

morning on the University commencement stage.

work and that role.”

Klein says she and her co-workers also admired Edgcomb for her integrity. “She had a very strong ethical

“I am forever grateful that Seton Hall opened me up to a profound and consequential way of looking at, and being in, the world.” n

and moral code that she was going to adhere to,” Klein says. “People respond to that in a leader.”

“She speaks her mind,” adds Paul. “That’s never

Research assistance on this article was provided by Alan Delozier, university archivist.

bothered her in any situation. But there’s always discussion and respect for other people.”

Molly Petrilla is a freelance writer based in New Jersey.

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The Comeback Kid

D

on’t get the wrong idea. Taylor Cutcliff ’19

Brandon Larmore ’08, the director of the Academic

wouldn’t want to relive the worst months of

Resource Center who worked with Cutcliff during her

her life, when doctors told her she would spend

time as a tutor and as a Habitat for Humanity volunteer.

the rest of her life in a wheelchair. But Cutcliff,

“And she’s on that list. She’s incredibly smart, very

a standout defender during her four years on the Seton

personable, very warm, welcoming, friendly, energetic.

Hall women’s soccer team, admits that those frightening

Everything you want in someone who’s bound to

days back in Springfield, Pennsylvania, paved the way

help others.”

for her involvement in community service and started

Cutcliff’s accomplishments read like those accumulat-

her on a journey filled with classroom accolades, on-field

ed over a decade instead of four years: BIG EAST Fresh-

accomplishments and a devotion to helping others.

man Scholar Athlete; PirateThon co-chair; part of the

“In a way, it made me into the person I am today,”

top-ranked Leadership Certificate Program; Collegiate

says Cutcliff, a mathematical finance major and branch

Challenge chair for Habitat for Humanity. She also

analyst at Morgan Stanley.

served as soccer captain.

“It” happened in junior high, when Cutcliff broke a

As a peer tutor, she helped students with math, some

bone in her ankle. This relatively straightforward injury

business classes, and accounting and biology. She says,

became dangerous when doctors removed the cast and

“It meant so much when you’re working with a student

discovered she suffered from reflex sympathetic dystro-

for maybe two weeks and they come back and they’re

phy (RSD) — her brain believed she was still injured

like, ‘I got a B,’ or, ‘I got an A on my test.’”

so kept pumping blood to the area. She endured four

Larmore marveled at Cutcliff’s willingness to tackle

surgeries, but they didn’t help. Doctors told her she

new adventures, including Habitat for Humanity trips

was destined for a wheelchair, difficult news for an

where students help with building homes, painting or

eighth-grader who loved running free on the soccer field.

even demolition.

During this downtime, she socialized more and partici-

In Delray Beach, Fla., a woman told students how

pated in community activities such as picking up trash on

she’d been trying to paint her house for seven years,

weekends. She discovered that she loved being involved,

saying, “I have a daughter and she wants to be proud

and loved helping. Then doctors found a cyst, which they

of her house. You guys are like angels from heaven.”

removed, and the pain and the condition disappeared.

Cutcliff remembers, “I was like, this is why I did this all

Cutcliff returned to star on the soccer field. But now

semester, for moments like these where I don’t realize

she was also an extraordinary student and champion

how much I actually have and how much I should

volunteer. That’s the all-around package that arrived at

actually be grateful for. It really motivated me to give all

Seton Hall, where she juggled Division I athletics with

I could to Habitat. It’s definitely going to be something

dozens of activities.

that I keep doing, well after Seton Hall.” n

“Over my entire career there have been about five students that I will never be able to replace,” says

28

Shawn Fury is an author in New York City.

SETON HALL MAGAZINE

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Photo courtesy of Seton Hall Athletics

“Over my entire career there have been about five students that I will never be able to replace,” says Brandon Larmore ’08, the director of the Academic Resource Center.

“And she’s on that list.”

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Never Lost His Hustle

Mike Sheppard Sr. in 2002.

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S E T O NS EHTAOLNL H MAALGLA ZMI ANGE A Z|I N EF A L|L / SWPI N R ITNE G R 2018 9

J

ust a few weeks before he died, former Seton Hall

Mo Vaughn and Baseball Hall of Famer Craig Biggio.

baseball coach Mike Sheppard Sr. ’58 spent the day

The ’87 team put together a remarkable 45-10 record.

doing what he’d done throughout his life: watching baseball with his family. His son Rob Sheppard

’92, the current Pirates coach, drove him to watch the

World Series teams. “Hard-nosed guy,” Blankmeyer says.

scrimmage between Seton Hall Prep, coached by Mike

“Demanding, very tough, no nonsense. He wanted players

Sheppard Jr. ’81, and Morristown-Beard School, coached

to be team-first kind of guys and didn’t accept anything

by John Sheppard ’87. They sat in the car, parked behind

else.” Blankmeyer became Sheppard’s longtime assistant

the left-field fence.

before carving out his own legacy as the coach at St.

“And so the last baseball game he was at,” Mike Jr.

John’s. And he joined the family, marrying Sheppard’s

says, “he was sitting with one of his sons who brought

daughter Susan. “He was a hell of a grandfather, and

him and watched his other sons’ teams play against

as tough of a guy as he was, he was a family guy first.”

each other. Pretty fitting.”

Baseball and family were defining aspects of

Everyone around the coach heard him command, “Never lose your hustle,” a saying he got from his father,

Sheppard’s life, which ended April 6 when he was 82.

who raised him after his mother died when he was

“Family came first,” Mike Jr. says about the Sheppard

young. “My dad had a tough upbringing,” Rob says, “and

clan that includes his mother, Phyllis, him and his two

I think that’s why he related to a lot of different kids.

brothers, and sisters Susan ’82 and Kathleen ’83.

So he always said to “work hard, never lose your hustle,”

“He was a man of great faith. He was a Marine, a tough guy. Because he had a rough exterior, people

Matt Rainey/The Star-Ledger © 2002 The Star-Legdger. All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission.

An early recruit, a Long Island kid named Ed Blankmeyer ’76/M.A.’83, excelled on those College

and it became his mantra.”

Mike Jr. recalls, “As a young kid, you hear that —

thought he’s not a very emotional guy, but that’s far

in one ear out the other. Maybe laugh a little. But

from who he is when you’re a family member or a

as you get older, and I know his players do the same

friend. He’d do anything for you.”

thing: in tough situations I find myself saying those

At his father’s wake, pictures showing a lighter side of the imposing figure surprised mourners. “People saw the photos,” Rob says, “and they’re like, ‘Oh, my God.

words, and it motivates you to pick yourself up and keep going.”

That all three Sheppard sons followed their father’s

That’s Shep dressed as a clown [on Halloween.] That’s

coaching path wasn’t surprising. When Rob replaced

Shep dressed as Santa Claus.’ He had a really good sense

Senior, “My dad was never overbearing. But I would

of humor.” Sheppard Sr. loved the pool, the shore and

be crazy not to listen to somebody with his experiences.

his boat. “He loved to be out in the water and he loved

He was a mentor. He was my coach. He was my dad. He

the beach. He loved life.”

was my best friend at times, and I was really fortunate.”

But there’s no question about the importance of

Mike Jr. adds that his dad never wanted to be known

baseball, with a career that started in 1973 when he

as just a coach. He also served as an assistant professor

replaced Owen T. Carroll, who had been his coach.

in Seton Hall’s Department of Education. Once Mike

Coach Sheppard won 998 games before his 2003 retire-

asked, “Dad, why don’t you become a full-time baseball

ment. His teams made the NCAA Tournament 10 times

coach?” His father replied, “I’m a teacher. I want to

and the College World Series in 1974 and 1975. He

make a difference in the regular students’ lives as well

earned BIG EAST Coach of the Year honors in 1985, ’87

as baseball players’ lives.” n

and ’89. Thirty players became Major Leaguers — guys like longtime Yankee Rick Cerone, former Red Sox star

Shawn Fury is an author in New York City.

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alumni

40s

John J. Dalton ’49 was named grand marshal of the Memorial Day parade in Millburn, N.J.

60s

Peter M. Caruso ’63 was named cogrand marshal of the Memorial Day parade hosted by the Sayreville VFW Memorial Post 4699 in New Jersey. …

Joseph G. Bilby ’65/M.A. ’82 received the Richard J. Hughes Prize from the New Jersey Historical Commission for a lifetime of achievement in the field of New Jersey history. … Omri M. Behr, J.D. ’66 was presented with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award by Marquis Who’s Who. … John R. Cosmi ’66/J.D. ’69 is the 2019 U.S. National Squash Champion in the men’s 70+ group. … Martin Tuchman, M.B.A ’68 was inducted into the Newark College of Engineering 100 Alumni Hall of Fame at the New Jersey Institute of Technology in March. … Eugene A. Ehrlich ’69/M.A.E. ’72/M.B.A. ’76 retired as a tech teacher at Edison Intermediate School in Westfield, N.J., after 50 years in the district. … Vincent Tavormina ’69 was elected as state deputy of the New Jersey Knights of Columbus.

70s

Frederick R. Dunne Jr., J.D. ’70 was named a Top Lawyer by Marquis Who’s Who. … Kenneth G. Hoyne ’70 released an alternative pop/rock album, Sublime. …

Richard Girgenti ’71 was appointed vice chairman of the board at K2 Intelligence, an investigative, compliance and cyber defense services firm. … Steven J. Pricone ’71 published a young adult novel titled They’re Here, You Know, with 10 percent of the book’s profits going to the Alzheimer’s Foundation. … Richard F. Riccardelli ’71 retired from the U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and now serves as a senior strategist for the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency. … Thomas N. Auriemma ’72/ J.D. ’75 was awarded the Lifetime

32

Achievement Award for more than 40 years of contributions by the International Association of Gaming Advisors. … Kenneth F. Kobularcik ’72 retired after 40 years as a sales executive with Travelers insurance and wrote his first children’s book, Going for a Walk with Papa: Story of Houses. … Judy Cucciniello ’73/M.A.E. ’82 was profiled by The Topeka Capital-Journal highlighting her 27 years of running study halls for struggling students at Hayden High School in Topeka, Kan. … Matt Sweeney ’73 was appointed to the American Bar Association Standing Committee on the American Judicial System. … Jack Papageorgis ’74/M.B.A ’87 was presented with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award by Marquis Who’s Who. … Charles S. Crow III, J.D. ’75 delivered the 2019 Leslie G. Rude Memorial Lecture at Hartwick College in Oneonta, N.Y. … Christina Keener ’75 was profiled by the Independent Record of Helena, Mont., for more than 40 years of nursing experience. … Patrick Longhi ’75 spoke at the 26th Annual Criminal Practice seminar at Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, Ga. … Trinna L. Rodgers ’75/J.D. ’79 received the Timothy K. Madden Award for Lifetime Achievement from Legal Services of New Jersey on the occasion of her retirement. …

Carlos Rodriguez, J.D. ’75 was awarded the Captain of the Industry Award by the New York-New Jersey Foreign Freight Forwarders and Brokers Association. … Timothy G. Rothwell, J.D. ’76 joined the board of advisers for ProMIS Neuroscience, a biotechnology company. … John A. Schneidawind ’76 was named The American Road & Transportation Builders Association’s vice president of public affairs. … Joann Sigall ’78 was honored with the DAISY Foundation’s Daisy Award for her ability to handle the challenges that face nursing leaders. …

Joseph A. Turula ’78/J.D. ’91 was elevated to presiding judge of the New Jersey Court Civil Division in Hudson County.

80s

Jonathan Sweetwood, J.D. ’81 was a finalist in the 2018 New Jersey Family Business of the Year competition hosted the Rothman Institute at Fairleigh Dickenson for his company Unique Photo, a retail

camera store and center for photography education. … Christine A. Amalfe ’82 was one of 335 attorneys nationwide on BTI Consulting Group’s 18th annual “Client Service All-Stars” list. … John K. Brust ’83 was appointed to the advisory board of the Bank of Greene County (N.Y.). … Dion C. Rooney ’83/M.B.A. ’90 was appointed chief information officer of GAF, a Standard Industries company in N.J. … Joseph J. Bell III, J.D. ’84 won a court appeal to unseal grand jury transcripts from a 1946 mass lynching case in Georgia. … Stephen A. Lovelette, M.B.A ’85 joined Kaanapali Land, LLC as principal financial officer. …

James Orsini ’85 was elected president of The Sasha Group, a consulting company working with entrepreneurs and small and mid-sized businesses. … Tim F. McGoughran, J.D. ’86 was elected treasurer of the New Jersey State Bar Association. … Deborah L. Scelzo ’86 was appointed senior vice president, commercial credit officer at Columbia Bank in N.J.. … Mary Ellen Clyne ’87/M.S.N. ’93/Ph.D. ’12 was honored for outstanding community service by the Bloomfield Township, N.J. …

Edward J. Chrystal ’88/M.A.E. ’99 was named to the Union County College board of governors in New Jersey. … Kenneth J. Gardner Jr. ’88 was named Irish Man of the Year by the American Irish Association of Woodbridge, N.J. … Martha D. Lynes, J.D. ’88 was sworn in as a judge of the Superior Court of New Jersey. … Todd Steven Burroughs ’89 published Marvel’s Black Panther character biography. …

Steven L. Fox, J.D. ’89 received the Robert J. Cirafesi Chancery Practice Award for his contributions and support of The Middlesex County (N.J.) Bar Association. … Steven M. Fusco ’89 joined Spencer Savings Bank in New Jersey as executive vice president and chief financial officer.

90s

Douglas R. Cabana, J.D. ’90 joined New Jersey’s Freeholder Hall of Fame. … John E. Keefe Jr., J.D. ’90 is immediate past president of the New Jersey State Bar Association. … John W. Niemasz, M.B.A ’90 ran uncontested for re-election for a seat on the Fredon Township (N.J.) Board

PROFILE Servant of the Law Photo by Michael Paras

M

anuel Sanchez ’67/M.B.A. ’79/J.D. ’84 earned three degrees from Seton Hall. Six of his siblings attended the University, too. But that would not have been possible without the courageous journey his parents, Guillermo and Carolina Sanchez, took in 1960. That year, the Sanchezes, both attorneys, left their native Cuba after Fidel Castro took control and came to the United States, settling in New Jersey with their nine children.

Manuel, just 13 when his family moved, says, “I said to myself some time ago that for my parents in their late 40s to pack up and take the nine kids into the United States, with no guarantees of what was going to happen here — I don’t know if I would have the guts and the faith that God will provide.

That was very important to them. And God did help us a lot.”

In addition to seven Sanchez children attending Seton Hall, Guillermo served as a Spanish language professor while Carolina also spent time teaching at the University. “They encouraged us to be good and to study hard, and the main thing was always education,” Sanchez says. “Tyrannies, communism, governments can sometimes take away your freedom but they can never take away your knowledge. Gain the knowledge and use it to the best of your ability and to be of service if you can.”

The Sanchez children did that, becoming teachers, doctors, nurses and lawyers.

Sanchez capitalized on the opportunities available in the United States and also served his country in the Army. He carved out a memorable career as an attorney, although he was a latecomer to the law. He first worked in business, including at Bloomingdale’s, but when his brother Luis started his own legal practice, Sanchez transitioned to law and became a partner in what became Sanchez, Sanchez & Santoliquido, which has offices in Elizabeth and South Plainfield, New Jersey.

More than 30 years later, Sanchez is semi-retired, but still comes to the office on Tuesdays and serves as municipal court judge for the Borough of South Plainfield. As an attorney he focused on real estate, workers’ compensation, contract disputes and municipal court matters. He took pride in helping multiple generations, where “you might go from the parents to the kids to the grandkids,” representing them on everything from traffic tickets to buying houses and businesses to developments and subdivisions.

“This is a service profession, that’s what it’s about,” he says. “Serve the people.” It’s a sentiment the late Guillermo and Carolina Sanchez would have surely appreciated.” | SHAWN FURY 33

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Pirate Babies 1. Nicole (Longobardo) ’12 and Luca Battaglia ’12, twin girls, Liliana Alessandra and Sofia Caterina, on June 13, 2018.

2. Steph Rozalski Gaven ’12 and Brian, a boy, Theodore, on December 15, 2018.

3. Gia (Focarelli) ’14 and Jordan DePuy ’13, a girl, Ella, born September 21, 2018.

4. Robert Manganaro ’99 and Marzena, a boy, Leo James, on November 6, 2018.

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Tying the knot 1. Era Caterina Murzaku ’10 to Mark Bauernfeind at Seton Hall Weekend 2018.

2. Jordan DePuy ’13 and Gia Focarelli ’14 at Seton Hall.

3. Kendra Moses ’12 to Daniel Pierre ’11 on March 29, 2019.

4. Frank E. Ferruggia Jr., J.D. ’14 to Mary Esperanza David on September 8, 2018.

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3

2

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of Education. … Wayne Staub ’90 was selected as a 2019 Lead New Jersey Fellow, helping to explore and solve public policy issues facing New Jersey. … John L. Sweeney, J.D. ’90 was elected to the Peapack-Gladstone Borough Council (N.J.). … Mariellen Dugan, J.D. ’91 rejoined Gibbons P.C. in Newark, N.J., as a director in the commercial and criminal litigation department. … David F. McBride Jr. ’91 was named finance director of New London, Conn.. … Vincent J. Politan, J.D. ’91 was named lead anchor for Court TV. … Carol M. Bianchi, J.D. ’92 was named external affairs consultant liaison of Jersey Central Power & Light. … Hollis A. Heichemer, M.A.E. ’92 was featured in the first exhibition at Hollis Taggart, a New York City art gallery. … George R. Kurtz ’92 took his security software firm, Crowdstrike, public on the Nasdaq stock market. … Edgardo Mantilla, M.S. ’92/Ph.D. ’96 joined Womble Bond Dickinson’s Boston office as a science adviser. … Evelyn Padin, J.D. ’92 was elected president of the New Jersey State Bar Association. … Kevin P. Ryan ’92 was appointed vice president and general manager of Burndy, an engineering company. … Antonio Scotto ’92 ran for re-election as a commissioner in Clearfield County, Pa. … Caroline D. Sullivan, M.B.A ’92 joined Moody’s Corporation as senior vice president, corporate controller. …

Brian M. Tynan ’92 was promoted to corporate vice president, government relations for the international engineering and construction firm AECOM. … Jeffrey M. Daitz J.D. ’93 joined Hall Booth Smith as a partner in its New Jersey office. …

Karl Schellscheidt, M.A.E. ’93 led the development of online video instruction for students through his company ePrep. …

Robert C. Scrivo, J.D. ’93, special counsel to the U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey, spoke at an event hosted by the Rebovich Institute of New Jersey Politics at Rider University. … Annmarie Simeon, J.D. ’93 was elected nominations co-director of the New Jersey Women Lawyers Association for 2019-20, and trustee of the Middlesex County Bar Association. …

Mary F. Bumiller ’94/M.A. ’01 gave the keynote speech at a University of Maine Rockland Center graduation celebration in May. … Samuel M. Gaylord, J.D. ’94

of Gaylord Popp, LLC, was recognized

by Continental Who’s Who as a Pinnacle Lifetime Attorney. … James M. Murray, M.A.E. ’94 was appointed director of the U.S. Secret Service. … Brendan P. Rae, J.D. ’94 joined CytoDyn, a biotechnology company, as the senior vice president of business development. … Denise Sharperson, J.D. ’94 won an American Bar Association Partnership Award for her New Jersey State Bar Association Education Pipeline Program which sends volunteers into the community to discuss the role of the law and the Constitution. … Carolyn M. Welsh ’94 was recognized for her 20 years of service at the NJ Sharing Network, a nonprofit dedicated to organ and tissue donation. … Loria Yeadon J.D. ’94 was appointed president and CEO of the YMCA of Greater Seattle, Wash., and to TiVo Corporation’s board of directors. … Vincent Auteri Jr. ’95/M.P.A ’99 was promoted to detective sergeant by the Lyndhurst (N.J.) Police Department … F. G. Guerra, M.B.A ’95 was named president and chief operating officer of Segram, an East Coast fiber network company. … Karen L. Homiek, M.A.E. ’95 was appointed superintendent of Ocean County (N.J.) Vocational Technical School. … JoAnne Piaggio ’95 completed her post-master’s certificate in Psych1 Mental Health at Monmouth University and joined Vioral Behavioral & Health Services. …

Most Rev. Peter Baldacchino, M.D.M. ’96 was named Bishop of Las Cruces, N.M., by Pope Francis. … Joseph R. Bonavolonta ’96 was named special agent in charge of the FBI’s Boston field office. … MaryJean Ellis, J.D. ’96 celebrated the 14th anniversary of her practice as a disability attorney. … Brendan W. Gill ’96 was re-elected president of the Essex County Freeholder Board (N.J.). … Adrian Griffin ’96 is an assistant coach for the Toronto Raptors, which won the 2019 NBA Championship. … Jeralyn L. Lawrence, J.D. ’96 spoke at the annual Hot Tips in Family Law program sponsored by the New Jersey State Bar Association’s Family Law Section. …

Christopher J. McGrath ’96 was appointed interim chief financial officer of QBE North America, an insurance company, and also as an acting member of the company’s North America executive committee. …

Thomas L. Smith ’96 was hired as the first African American city attorney of Antioch, Calif. … Father Eric Hall, M.D.M. ’97/M.A.T. ’01 was named chancellor of the Spiritual Care Association University of Theology and Spirituality. … Richard L. Jarvis Jr. ’97 was sworn in as the chief of the Lyndhurst Police Department (N.J.). … Mark Manigan, J.D. ’97 was named executive vice president of RWJBarnabas Hospital’s business development team. … Thomas M. Perone, J.D. ’97 was appointed senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary of Ovid Therapeutics. … Bette M. Simmons Ed.D. ’97 received the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development Excellence Award in recognition of her commitment to community colleges. …

Justin M. Walsh, J.D. ’97, a Pennsylvania state representative, announced his candidacy for Westmoreland County judge. …

Kristy M. dosReis ’98 was named public information officer under Attorney Generalelect Peter F. Neronha in Providence, R.I. …

Kelly Gaughan, J.D. ’98 was confirmed to a vacant seat as judge in the Pike County, Pa., Court of Common Pleas. … Robert M. Gilmartin Jr., J.D. ’98 joined the law firm of Tanenaum Keale, LLP. … David K. Kelley, M.S.T. ’98 joined SIB Fixed Cost Reduction as chief financial officer. …

John F. Kober III, M.B.A ’98 was appointed chief financial officer and principal accounting officer of L.S. Starrett Co., a tool manufacturer. … Fruqan Mouzon, J.D. ’98 joined McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter, LLP as an of counsel member. … Robert A. Quinn III ’98 is the Republican candidate for Somerset County (N.J.) freeholder. … Raymond P. Raiche, J.D. ’98 was appointed to the Fishkill, N.Y., Town Board. … William S. Arnold, M.H.A. ’99 was named president of the Southern Region of RWJBarnabas health. … Danielle C. (Dagrosa) Glogovsky ’99 received her Doctorate of Nursing Practice from LaSalle University in May. … Stephen Jaffe, M.A.E. ’99 was appointed chief of police in Mahwah, N.J. … Dane E. Lopes, M.B.A ’99 was promoted to chief commercial officer of Everest Insurance. … Vincent Quatrone, M.A.E. ’99 was sworn in as executive undersheriff of Bergen County, N.J.

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The 33rd annual Many Are One gala celebrated a lifetime of leadership for outgoing Interim President Mary J. Meehan ’72/M.A. ’74/Ph.D. ’01. During President Meehan’s tenure, among other accomplishments, Seton Hall welcomed its largest freshman class in history, rose to rank 25th in the nation for social mobility, and increased the giving rate of graduating seniors from 12 percent to 60 percent, and of undergraduate alumni from 8.3 percent to 11 percent.

Other honorees at Many Are One included alumni from each college and school of the University: • Jeanne Brasile, M.A. ’04, College of Communication and the Arts • Martin Foncello, J.D. ’05, School of Law • Clayton A. Graham ’77, College of Arts and Sciences • Stephanie Hauge, M.B.A. ’78/ M.A.T. ’15, Stillman School of Business • Maryann Hobbie, M.A. ’02, Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology • Sarah Husseini, M.A. ’12, School of Diplomacy and International Relations • Timothy Purnell, Ed.D. ’08, College of Education and Human Services • Veronica F. Rempusheski ’75, College of Nursing • Nicholas Santos, M.S. ’13, School of Health and Medical Sciences Many Are One celebrates the legacy of servant leadership at Seton Hall and helps ensure the education of future students through the Many Are One Alumni Endowed Scholarship Fund. Donations support the fund, which provides four-year scholarships for children, grandchildren and siblings of alumni.

The master of ceremonies for the evening, Steve Adubato, announced that the 2019 Many Are One event campaign raised more than $100,000 for scholarships.

To support the scholarship, or view videos about the honorees and photos of the evening, visit www.shu.edu/ManyAreOne

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00s

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Scott C. Andrews, J.D. ’00 will seek the Republican nomination for Bartholomew County (Ind.) Superior Court 2 judge in next year’s primary. … Patrick L. Beatty, Ed.S ’00/Ed.D. ’14 was promoted to program coordinator of the Criminal Justice Department at Newberry College in South Carolina. … George M. Bitar, M.S. ’00 joined CytoDyn as executive director - Head of Quality. … Randall G. Koch, M.P.A ’00 was presented with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award by Marquis Who’s Who. … William VanDerBeek, M.A.E. ’00 was named to The Beaufort Memorial Hospital Foundation, the fundraising arm of the nonprofit community hospital in South Carolina. … Meera Agarwal, M.A. ’01 was a featured artist in an Indian contemporary art exhibit in Greenwich, Conn. … Ronnie J. Diamonde ’01 joined Douglas Elliman Real Estate. … Robert J. Girard, J.D. ’01 was named a Super Lawyer by his peers for the fourth year in a row. … DéVon C. Johnson, ’01 was recognized for his creation of Bleu Magazine and Bombshell, an online publication …

Paul Matey, J.D. ’01 was confirmed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. … Paul G. Mathew ’01 was elected chairman of the Procedural Special Interest Section of the American Headache Society. … Alice C. Milligan, M.A. ’01 was appointed chief customer officer of E*Trade Financial Corporation. …

Quovella Spruill, M.A. ’01 was appointed a police leadership mentor with the Highland Park (N.J.) Police Department. … Michael Voorhees, M.A.E. ’01 retired as deputy chief of the Bernards Township (N.J.) Police Department after 26 years of service. … Daniel R. Barber, M.B.A. ’02 was named chief operating officer of Aquestive Therapeutics. … David Brady, M.A. ’02 is a senior analyst with the security and safety practice at Gannett Fleming, an infrastructure consulting company. … Denise Hinds-Zaami, Ed.D. ’02 published the book Reflections of My Life. … Adam J. McInerney, J.D. ’02 made partner at Riker Danzig Scherer Hyland Perretti, LLP. … Akilah Thompkins-

Robinson ’02 released the book My SEO Workbook. … Tracy L. Frazzano, M.A. ’03 became the Montclair Police Department’s first female detective, sergeant, lieutenant, captain and now deputy chief. … Afigo I. OkpewhoFadahunsi, J.D. ’03 joined Tanenaum Keale, LLP. … Michael St. Pierre, M.A.T. ’03/M.A.E. ’09 released the book The 5 Habits of Prayerful People. … Gail S. Thornton, M.A. ’03 received the Public Relations Society of America’s Atlas Award for lifetime of achievement in international public relations. … David S. Viana ’03 partnered with Neilly Robinson at the Heirloom Kitchen restaurant in Oldbridge, N.J., where he is executive chef and co-owner. … James F. Whalen, M.S. ’03 was appointed vice president of finance and chief accounting officer of Commvault System, Inc. … Danielle DeFilippis, J.D. ’04 was named co-chair of the law firm Norris McLaughlin, P.A.’s intellectual property practice group. …

Joseph A. Devine, M.A. ’04/Ed.D. ’07 presented a lecture on leadership, management and supervision to the Fairfield (N.J.) Police. … Vedat Gashi, J.D. ’04 is running for the Westchester County, N.Y., board of legislators … Matthew P. Pietrowski, J.D. ’04 was named partner at Levinson Axelrod, P.A. … Father Charles I. Anemelu ’05 was awarded first place of the 2018 PenCraft Awards for Literary Excellence. … Christopher Avella, M.B.A. ’05 was appointed as chief financial officer of Hermitage Offshore Services Ltd. … Sandra C. Fava, J.D. ’05 was named to the National Law Journal’s inaugural list of Family Law Trailblazers. … Erika E. Jacho ’05 was sworn in as a Belleville (N.J.) Board of Education trustee. … Michael E. Janes, M.A. ’05 celebrated a one-year anniversary as director of executive communications at San Jose State University. … John R. Liddle, M.A. ’05 was named deputy county manager in Sullivan County, N.Y. …

Kristin M. McElroy ’05 was inducted into the Ancillae-Assumpta Academy Alumni Hall of Fame in Pennsylvania. … Craig R. McGraw ’05 was awarded the National Police Defense Foundations Distinguished Member of the Year Award. … Ronald J. Seaman, M.A. ’05 was promoted to the

rank of captain of the South Brunswick (N.J.) Police Department. … Kristina L. Trauger, J.D. ’05 joined Shearman & Sterling to establish a capital markets practice in Houston. … Andrew S. Bae, M.S. ’06 joined White Oak Commercial Finance as an asset-based loan originator covering the southwestern United States. … Mayling Blanco, J.D. ’06 joined Norton Rose Fulbright as a partner in the white-collar crime, investigations and tax practices in New York. … Todd M. Giannattasio ’06 was appointed as digital adviser, executive vice president of DSM, a marketing agency. … Scott C. Hook, J.D. ’06 announced his candidacy for commonwealth’s attorney in Fauquier County, Va. … Brian S. Kern, J.D. ’06 joined Acadia Professional Liability as partner. … Michelle Mitchell ’06/M.A.E. ’93 joined CentraState Healthcare System’s maternity department overseeing perinatal quality and safety measures. … Diane Araujo Vidal, J.D. ’07 joined Chiumento Dwyer Hertel Grant & Kistemaker, P.L. … Mark D’Urso ’07 joined DMR Architects production staff. … Xin He, M.S. ’07 was appointed chief financial officer of Professional Diversity Network, a global network developer. …

Andrew D. Linden, J.D. ’07 was named co-chair of Norris McLaughlin, P.A. law firm’s cannabis law group. … Andrew W. Mielach ’07 joined LifeSci Public Relations, LLC. … Matthew Moench, J.D. ’07 announced his candidacy for mayor of Bridgewater, N.J. … Larissa Noto, J.D. ’07 joined Penn State Lehigh Valley in Center Valley, Pa., as a part-time lecturer in yoga. … Kyle L. Rosenkrans, J.D. ’07 launched New Jersey Children’s Foundation, to help improve public education systems. … Robert Szczur ’07 was promoted to sergeant at the Montville Township (N.J.) Police Department. … Dean Acosta, M.A. ’08 was named senior vice president of communications of Lockheed Martin, a global security and aerospace company. … Archange Antoine, M.A. ’08 ran for mayor of Roselle, N.J. … Riccardo DeBari, J.D. ’08 joined Thompson Hine, LLP. … Julianne J. Kelly Tarver ’08 was promoted to pro bono program director at Maryland Legal Aid. … Mark Labban ’08 was promoted to assistant director of

SETON HALL MAGAZINE

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H

PROFILE A True Servant Leader

is last act of charity was donating bone marrow for a 14-year-old boy in France he didn’t know, but who shared his blood type and needed his help. Derrick Nelson, Ed.D. ’13, never awoke from the operation, dying in April at age 44 after a full life as a servant leader.

As the popular high-school principal in Westfield, New Jersey, and a 20-year veteran of the Army Reserves, his death evoked an outpouring of vigils and social-media tributes, including one from Gov. Phil Murphy, who remarked that Nelson “embodied all that makes New Jersey great. His final act was one of selflessness.” More than 400 people attended his funeral, held just two months before he was planning to be married.

Long before Nelson earned his doctoral degree in K-12 school administration from Seton Hall, he had a long military career in the Reserves, serving as an officer whose assignments included a Middle East deployment.

Nelson spent time working in public relations and marketing before heeding a “nagging itch” to teach, taking his first classroom position at Washington Elementary School in his hometown of Plainfield in 2002. During this time, he obtained a master’s degree in educational leadership administration from Saint Peter’s University, which eventually led to his first administrative position as assistant principal at Park Avenue Elementary public school in Orange.

During his education career, Nelson implemented or designed a variety of needed programs: an engineering program, a Reader’s and Writer’s Workshop, an “Everyday Math” program and an organization called “Men on a Mission,” which brought students’ fathers and staff together to mentor boys in fifth through seventh grade.

“Derrick was a gentleman and a gentle soul,” said Martin Finkelstein, professor in the Department of Education Leadership, Management and Policy who served as Nelson’s dissertation adviser. “If all students were like him, I wouldn’t be retiring.”

“Whether it was the work he did in education with youths or how he served his country and even the selflessness that led up to this tragedy — all things point to the fact that he was a true American

hero,” said Paul Valenzano, a counselor at Westfield High School, in an online tribute in the Westfield High School newspaper Hi’s Eye. “He was called. He served. He is counted.”

More than 27,000 people have signed an online petition to change the name of the school to Derrick Nelson High School, one of the suggestions for honoring Nelson being considered by the Westfield Board of Education. | MICHAEL GIORGIO 39

NE WS & N OTE S special events and affiliate programming of Minor League Baseball. … Eurice E. Rojas, M.H.A. ’08 was presented with Save Latin America, Inc.’s first Lifetime Achievement Award. … Evan Yablonsky, J.D. ’08 was promoted to principal at Bressler, Amery & Ross. … Michael W. Dickinson ’09 became senior managing partner of Oak Cliff Tickets, LLC. … Amy Giuliano ’09 created virtual reality experiences of churches in Rome. … Mark Muoio, J.D. ’09 ran for Rochester (N.Y.) City Court judge in the May Democratic primary. … Eileen M. Overbaugh, J.D. ’09 was promoted to partner with the Lowenstein Sandler law firm. …

Christopher Popp, M.S.T. ’09 joined Valley National Financial Advisors as a senior tax accountant. … John L. Schweder, J.D. ’09 was elected to partnership with Pepper Hamilton, LLP law firm. … Laurie Zickler-Bandlow, Ed.D. ’09 was named superintendent of the Brewster Central School District in Putnam County, N.Y.

10s

David E. Baugh, Ed.D. ’10 was a finalist for the job of superintendent of Missoula County (Mont.) Public Schools. … Tiriq Callaway ’10 published an article titled “Rich Love, Poor Love” for the online publication Thrive Global. … Priscilla Garces ’10 ran for Newark (N.J.) Board of Education’s Advisory Board. … Daniel Jean, Ed.D. ’10, executive director of the Educational Opportunity Fund Program and academic development at Montclair (N.J.) State University, created a socialmedia group to support minority students seeking doctoral degrees. … Peter M. Slocum J.D. ’10 is a partner at law firm Lowenstein Sandler LLP. … Britnee N. Timberlake ’10/M.P.A ’12 is the first inductee to the Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey’s Hall of Heroes. … Matthew P. Giroveanu ’11 acted in Broadway’s Next H!T Musical LIVE!, an improvisational show about musical comedy awards. … Tommy A. Ibrahim, M.H.A. ’11 presented at the National Healthcare CMO Summit. …

Kerry F. Magro ’11/M.A. ’13 received a doctoral degree in educational technology and leadership from New Jersey City 40

University. … Christine M. McCarthy, J.D. ’11 was named counsel at the law firm Einhorn, Harris, Ascher, Barbarito & Frost, PC. … Sara Parmigiani, M.A. ’11 presented an exhibit at the Union County (N.J.) Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs. … Alyana Alfaro Post ’12 was named press secretary in the office of New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy. … Osman Oztoprak, M.A. ’12 was honored by Interweave, a New Jersey spiritual living support organization, as a distinguished global citizen. … Todd R. Sweda, Ed.D. ’12 was named high-school superintendent in the Archdiocese of St. Louis. … John P. Sweetman ’12 was sworn in as an officer in the Morristown (N.J.) Bureau of Police … Father Matthew Marinelli ’13 was ordained to the Diocese of Metuchen (N.J.). … Jenna G. Mason ’13 was presented with the March of Dimes Rising Star Award. … Deborah Merrill, M.A.E. ’14 joined the Vernon Township (N.J.) School District as the director of specialeducation services. … Ariel Almora, M.A. ’15 was sworn in as sergeant of Franklin Township (N.J.) Police Department. …

Angelica M. Aristone, M.A. ’15 was promoted to executive vice president of communications of iHeartMedia. … Byron Darnall, Ed.D. ’15 was named principal at Franklin-Simpson High School in Kentucky. … Joshua Siegel ’16 ran for Allentown (Pa.) City Council. … Matthew Walker ’16 was promoted to corporate partnerships coordinator with the Pittsburgh Steelers. … Daniel Golabek ’17 was sworn in as mayor of New Elmwood Park (N.J.). … Robert E. Knee ’17 completed his master’s degree in statecraft and national affairs at the Institute of World Politics in Washington, D.C. … Jeffrey C. Martinelli, M.A.E. ’17 was named principal of Immaculate Conception School in Somerville, N.J. … Stacy J. Pechter ’18 joined the Mayo Clinic’s Rochester, Minn., campus as a registered nurse.

Baby Pirates Nicole (Longobardo) ’12 and Luca Battaglia ’12, twin girls, Liliana Alessandra and Sofia Caterina, on June 13, 2018.

Dana (Denaro) ’97 and Sean Susani ’98, a girl, Juliet Mary, on August 28, 2018. Gia (Focarelli) ’14 and Jordan DePuy ’13, a

girl, Ella, born September 21, 2018. Jason Thomas Carter ’08 and Meghan, a boy, Ethan Thomas, on September 26, 2018.

Robert Manganaro ’99 and Marzena, a boy, Leo James, on November 6, 2018.

Erin (Kelly) McGuinness ’00 and Chris, a boy, Ryan James, on November 15, 2018.

Caitlyn (Cafferty) ’11 and Ian Mehok ’11, a boy, Owen Patrick, on November 23, 2018. Mary (Savner) ’02/’04 and Stephen Pierce ’02/M.B.A. ’03/M.A.E. ’08, a boy, Andrew Stephen, on January 8, 2018.

Steph Rozalski Gaven ’12 and Brian, a boy, Theodore, on December 15, 2018. Frank Forte ’10 and Victoria, a girl, Penelope Marie, on January 5, 2019.

Weddings Jordan DePuy ’13 and Gia Focarelli ’14 on August 4, 2017. Bonnie J. Manfredi ’74 to Ronald F. Baron on June 1, 2018.

Frank E. Ferruggia Jr., J.D. ’14 to Mary Esperanza David on September 8, 2018.

Michael Gerlach, M.S. ’14 to Alison Rebelo ’14 on September 22, 2018. Mark Viggiano ’13 to Kathryn Doherty ’13 on September 29, 2018. Jennifer Liesch ’13/D.P.T. ’16 to Roberto Sasso on October 17, 2018. Era Caterina Murzaku ’10 to Mark Bauernfeind on October 20, 2018. Kendra Moses ’12 to Daniel Pierre ’11 on March 29, 2019. Peter Annelli ’07 to Marina Shirley ’12 in April 2019.

In Memoriam Monsignor Francis J. Houghton ’47 John A. Mooney ’47 Marvin B. Davidson ’48 Douglass J. Denman ’48 Carlotta F. Winslow, M.A. ’48 Eleanor M. Cammarota ’49 Nicholas S. Cappuccino ’49 Donald W. Cooper ’49 Donald J. Fitzmaurice ’49 Robert J. Lorello ’49 Seymour R. Miller ’49 Andrew R. Saporito ’49/M.A. ’53 Joseph W. Brisick ’50 James F. Doran ’50 Walter M. Earl ’50 Francis M. Mastromano ’50 W. H. Nestler ’50 Elvin F. Zipf ’50 Robert E. Belthoff ’51

SETON HALL MAGAZINE

Joseph M. Calabria ’51 Raymond J. Cooney ’51 Anthony J. Crincoli ’51 John M. Didonato ’51 John J. Farmer ’51 Joseph D. Federici ’51 Ralph N. Gamba ’51 Benedict Gambardella ’51 John P. Hastings ’51 Raymond D. Howell ’51 Ferdinand C. Maiorino ’51 Anthony S. Nardiello ’51 Orlando E. Panfile ’51 Robert P. Powers ’51 Bishop Frank J. Rodimer, M.Div. ’51 Dominic A. Vatrano ’51 Anna Sicurella Auth ’52 Frank J. Grygiel ’52 Burton L. Klein ’52 James J. Pontrella ’52 Joseph Raffetto ’52 Anthony R. Amabile ’53 John L. Coviello ’53 George Tomko ’53 Eustace A. Anselmi ’54 Julian J. Ciotta ’54 Nancy Daniel ’54 William P. Flynn ’54/M.B.A. ’62 Henry G. Largey ’54/M.B.A. ’61 Veronica M. McGreevey ’54 Father Michael J. Moran ’54/M.Div. ’81 Edward J. Butler ’55 James C. Haggerty ’55 Paul J. Malague ’55 William F. Shannon ’55 Faustina M. Stefanelli, M.A. ’55 John E. Syarto ’55 George M. Baurkot ’56 Cornelius M. Dillin ’56 Edward J. Keelan ’56 Ruth M. Lewit ’56 William P. McDermott, M.A. ’56 Edward P. Migliaccio ’56/M.A. ’58 Rita M. O’Loughlin, M.A. ’56 Stephen R. Piga ’56 Francis J. Reinhardt ’56 Walter E. Reutter, M.A. ’56 Edna Watson ’56 John B. Artopoeus ’57 Levon Barmakian, M.A. ’57 Clifford C. Borden ’57 Francis E. Caskey ’57 Father Dorino J. Cozzini ’57 John S. Helewa ’57 Bishop John M. Smith ’57 Richard A. Vogel ’57

John Bunce ’58 Eugene F. Burke ’58 Frederick J. Chemidlin ’58 Richard G. Hanna ’58 Robert G. Hayden ’58 Robert F. Landy ’58 Joseph A. Ramm ’58 Ruth Hill Scheja ’58 Robert F. Schuler ’58/M.B.A. ’62 Michael J. Sheppard ’58/M.A. ’67 Stanley J. Siegel, M.A. ’58 Russell A. Vassallo ’58/J.D. ’62 E. John Beckley ’59 Florence V. Buzinky, M.A. ’59 Immaculate Carotenuto ’59/’72 Gail Barrett Manning ’59 Monsignor Francis R. Seymour ’59 Rose Adelgais Yukob ’59 Michael R. Zarro, M.A. ’59 Frank W. Brodzinski ’60 Josephine M. Carolan ’60/ M.A. ’76/M.A.P.M. ’90 James J. Degnan ’60 Anthony DiFlumeri ’60 Maynard P. Fletcher ’60 Harry W. Kamph ’60 William J. Kennedy ’60 Walter R. Kennedy ’60/J.D. ’65 John H. McCormick ’60 Angelina L. Ranieri, M.A. ’60 Anton F. Schulzki ’60 Mary D. Tachdjian ’60 William Jan Van Veen ’60 Anthony Arthur Donatelli ’61 Miriam Gorman Fox, M.A. ’61 Carroll F. McGuire ’61 Nicholas J. Milos ’61 Joseph M. Nutry ’61 Ronald L. Rallo ’61 Edward Leo Reilly ’61 Thomas J. Sheridan ’61 David A. Spitalnick, J.D. ’61 John Wrable ’61 Carol P. Germain ’62 George W. Kelly ’62 Kathleen A. Koval ’62 William S. Lesko ’62 Peter R. Seyka ’62 Dorothy R. Wood ’62 James W. Wright, M.A. ’62 Marie R. Andreotta ’63 William John Coburn ’63/M.A. ’79 Rosario T. Grasso ’63 Stephen L. Hazuda ’63 Robert W. Kinney ’63 Clement E. Kisailus, J.D. ’63

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Ceres Aros Locher ’63 Joyce M. McNichol ’63 Ralph M. Mezza ’63 Richard G. Sharkey, J.D. ’63 Father Edward P. Szpiech ’63 Rosemary W. Wynn ’63 Daniel H. Beaton, M.B.A. ’64 William F. Bolan ’64/J.D. ’68 Monica Cerebe ’64 Arthur J. Cotterell ’64/M.A. ’70 William W. Dornburgh, M.B.A. ’64 Henry E. Heintjes ’64 Paul J. Hofbeck ’64 Father Leon J. Inverso ’64 Harold W. Kimble ’64 Joseph A. Maio ’64 Harry Schatmeyer Jr. ’64 Paul J. Bass ’65 Sister Mary Debacco ’65 Adelbert Hornick ’65 George J. Hovanec ’65 Joseph Iannacone ’65 John R. Rae ’65 John J. Tirpak ’65 John F. Tully ’65/M.Div. ’76 Michael W. Cloud ’66 Lawrence Davis ’66 Russell E. Dean, M.B.A. ’66 John Dunleavy ’66 Evelyn Fiorentino ’66 Arthur F. Parent, J.D. ’66 Bernice G. Poll, M.A. ’66 Robert F. Quinton ’66 David William Yacavone ’66/M.A. ’68 Frank J. Bonavita ’67 Edward T. Delnero ’67 Donald X. Fletcher ’67 Catherine M. O’Flaherty, M.A. ’67 Sister M. Philomena Toomey, M.B.A. ’67 Peter P. Walsh ’67 Peter Berlinski ’68 Regina M. Fielding, M.A. ’68 Roy W. Gaskill, M.A. ’68 Anthony M. Lasala, M.A. ’68 Joseph R. Mariniello, J.D. ’68 Martin Floyd Mueller ’68 Arthur J. Schroff, M.B.A. ’68 John R. Taylor, J.D. ’68 Linda A. Bierherr ’69 William R Cahill, M.A. ’69 Dominic P. Festante ’69 Janet Maddams, M.S. ’69 Julia M. Michaels ’69 Margaret Ann Murray, M.A. ’69 Sister Mary Yvonne Osborne, M.A. ’69 Sister M. Helen Scicchitano, M.A. ’69 41

NE WS & N OTE S Robert Michael Smith ’69 Clifford J. Weininger, J.D. ’69 Thomas J. Cannizzo ’70 Harry A. Delventhal ’70 Jerome Charles Feinthel ’70 James Joseph Gray ’70 Mary Jane Kaminskas ’70 Father Adrian C. Piotrowski, M.A. ’70 Edward P. Stefanczyk ’70 Thomas Warnke, J.D. ’70 Dennis Cocozza ’71/M.Div. ’75 Elizabeth A. English ’71 Lorraine S. Gerson, J.D. ’71 Jerome A. Haggart ’71 Charles M. Kenworthy ’71 Eugene Kolakowski ’71 Peter G. Loftus, J.D. ’71 George A. Meluso, M.B.A. ’71 Karl Zigmund Najaka, M.A. ’71 William J. Resotko ’71 John Seccafico ’71 Joseph Byron Sheare, M.A. ’71 Thomas Joseph Winters ’71 Eugene Jay Dalbo ’72 K. Thomas Dean, M.B.A. ’72 James F. Flanagan, J.D. ’72 Olivio A. Ippolito ’72 Leonard F. Jengeleski, M.A. ’72 Vincent T. Lombardi ’72 Jorge J. Martinez, M.B.A. ’72 Phyllis Morton, M.A. ’72 Dana E. Owen ’72 Mary K. Patterson ’72 Ernest J. Piermarini, M.A. ’72/Ed.D. ’01 Steven P. Russo, J.D. ’72 John Anthony Casazza ’73 Robert J. Foley, J.D. ’73 Charles C. Marshall, J.D. ’73 Gerald T. Gervasi, J.D. ’74 James C. Gillick, M.A. ’74 Joann Melhado, M.A. ’74 Christine Marie Origlieri ’74 William J. Salmond, J.D. ’74 Audrea Scaffidi ’74 Ellen O’Kane Tauscher ’74 William J. Butler ’75 Nicholas P. Castellano ’75 Sonya Rubin, M.A. ’75 Daniel Bachrach, M.A. ’76 Kathryn H. Dawson, M.A. ’76 Valerie A. Saad ’76 Miriam Fields Jackson ’77 Kenneth J. Karole ’77 Kevin E. Ruffing ’77

42

Patricia Bender Trego ’77 Philip Battaglia ’78/J.D. ’81 John Capparelli ’78 Robert Caprio, M.A. ’78 Maureen Kiernan ’78 Eileen Ogle Persichetty ’78/M.A. ’78 John Blaise Pogany ’78 Thomas J. Critchley, J.D. ’79 Maureen Scheuerman Dougherty, J.D. ’79 Frederick I. Levine, J.D. ’79 Richard Pagano ’79 Ann C. Williams, M.S. ’79 William Gallagher, M.B.A. ’80 Jeannine Nazzaro, M.A. ’80 Mark G. Yates, J.D. ’80 David Campbell, M.A. ’81 Anna Ettl ’81 Edward Reilly ’81 William Devoti ’82 Sharon Gloor Hoffman ’82 Robert Wilhelm, M.A. ’82 John Kieffer ’83 James J. Seaman, J.D. ’83 Thomas J. Romeo, M.B.A. ’84 William M. Sorg, M.B.A. ’84 Cheryl C. Bolden ’85 Mary C. Lemanski ’85 Michael T. Luckewicz, J.D. ’85 Sylvie D. Manach ’85 Sylvie Markowitz ’85 Suzanne S. Placek, M.B.A. ’85 Lori A. Romer ’85 Debra V. Urbanowicz-Pandos, J.D. ’85 Jacqueline Rose Bischoff ’86 Deborah Ann Calviello ’86 Gregory G. Gleason, J.D. ’86 Angela M. Raimo, J.D. ’86 Dianne Penn Zusi ’86 Sister Catherine Reilly, Ed.S. ’87 Kevin Bruce Murphy ’89 Cary D. Lynch, M.A. ’90 William Francis Yodice, M.A. ’90 Diane West, M.A. ’91 Carmen J. Liuzza ’92 Jeffrey William Wides, Ed.S. ’92 Carmen S. Arlotta, Ed.S. ’93 Eunice Lewis, J.D. ’93 Karen Ann Stokes, M.A. ’95 Helen M. Hamilton ’98 Susan Locascio, M.A. ’98 Robert D. Dunlop, M.A. ’99 Gerard Babo, Ed.D. ’01 Robert B. Picca ’01

Melanie Littell North, Ed.D. ’03 Caitlin Yvonne Coggon ’07 John Michael Carmody ’11 Derrick Edward Nelson, Ed.D. ’13 Alexa Gabrielle Valiente ’13 John Patrick Casey, M.A. ’15 Edward Allen Chu ’17 Friends Helen Hamilton Edwin John Havas Angela Raimo Cullen McCann-Schlesiona Cheryl Thompson-Sard

Seton Hall Giving Grows 40% in Two Years Thousands of Setonians and friends gave millions of dollars to the University in fiscal year 2019, including more than 5,700 undergraduate alumni. This represents a nearly 40 percent jump in undergraduate alumni giving since fiscal year 2017.

“This demonstrates the cohesiveness of the Setonian community and the power of Pirates advocating the University to other Pirates,” said Anthony Bellucci, associate vice president of alumni engagement and philanthropy.

Seton Hall’s new fiscal year kicked off on July 1.

Be part of the University’s continued growth. Make an impact on the lives of current students, today.

Visit www.shu.edu/giving.

Clarification: In the Spring 2019 issue of Seton Hall magazine, the “50 Years of EOP” story on page 7 included a general photo of Seton Hall students, implying they were in the program. They were not.

We regret the error.

SETON HALL MAGAZINE

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Jennifer Liesch ’13/D.P.T. ’16 married Roberto Sasso on October 17, 2018, in Hendersonville, North Carolina.

Pirate Pride Tag us in your Pirate Pride photos @setonhallalumni or email us alumni@shu.edu

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PRIDE IN ACTION 1) Betsey ’78 and Matthew Sheprow ’77 on the island of Mont Saint-Michel in Normandy, France. 2) Emmanuel Vozos ’07 at Chichén Itzá in Mexico.

3) Anna Calka, M.A. ’14 in Alaska. 4) Patrick Cusack ’91 (front row, third from the left) at his 50th birthday celebration surrounded by many Pirate friends and family.

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LA S T WO R D |

PEGEEN HOPKINS

Déjà vu The rise of social media as a news source. Fake news.

One of the drivers of dissatisfaction with the news seems to be bias (perceived or otherwise) in coverage. What are the parallels between the time period you studied and today?

Accusations of corrosive bias. The U.S. media industry

I think we’ve been having the

is embroiled in a period of disorienting upheaval,

same debate about media

a time when the principles that guide the news are

bias ever since the late 1960s.

being sharply re-examined. But according to Matthew

Republicans, led by Vice

Pressman, an assistant professor of journalism in the

President Spiro Agnew, began

College of Communication and the Arts, this kind of

saying that the news media has a liberal bias, not just in

turmoil is not unprecedented. In his new book On Press:

the editorial pages, but in the news coverage also. That

The Liberal Values That Shaped the News, he argues that

critique was almost unheard of prior to the ’60s and in-

the values shaping American journalism today emerged

terpretive reporting. In substance I don’t think the debate

in the 1960s and ’70s. The history charts how and why

about bias has changed much in the 50 or so years since.

significant changes occurred in the news, particularly

The main change is how heated and violent the critique

at two major newspapers: The New York Times and the

has become in the past few years.

Los Angeles Times. Seton Hall magazine editor Pegeen Hopkins spoke with Pressman to learn more:

I also talk about the critique of the news media from the left, which began in the 1960s with a lot of people — journalists included — criticizing the news media for

How has the idea of news changed over time?

having a bias in favor of the establishment and bending

In the 1960s and ’70s, the news became more analytical

over backwards to avoid seeming too liberal. I think

and interpretive — reporters started trying to tell their

you’ve seen that critique come back stronger today as

audiences why things were happening rather than simply

well, probably stronger than at any time since the 1970s.

what happened. The scope of news became a lot broader, too, and I think that’s a positive development. News is no

What was the most surprising thing to you about your research?

longer considered just what people in powerful positions

I was definitely surprised at the vehemence of the critique

are doing. It also includes the details about everyday

from the left and just how strong that was within many

life. This was a big change for major metropolitan daily

newsrooms. I was also surprised at how quick and dramat-

newspapers especially.

ic the shift was to a more adversarial approach to news coverage. It happened in just a few years. In the mid-to-late

44

What drove this increase in lifestyle news?

’60s the approach of reporters to politicians and other

The economic imperative of trying to give readers and

people in power changed significantly from this idea of

advertisers what they want. The ’60s, and especially

“We’ll give you the benefit of the doubt, and we’re all on the

the early ’70s, were a time of real economic crisis for the

same side here,” to “We’re out to expose you,” essentially.

news industry, not so different from today. One approach

I also thought it was interesting that this shift happened

many newspapers took was to create new sections

a little bit earlier than I expected. A lot of people associate

that would devote more space to people’s leisure and

that shift with Watergate, but I found that it really started

personal interests that would be an attractive venue

several years earlier than that and had more to do with the

for advertisers also.

Vietnam War than it did with Watergate. n

A guaranteed paycheck for life?

What’s not to like?

A gift that pays you back: n The

security of stable cash flow for life.

Yes, for life.

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than average payments compared to CDs and savings accounts.

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taxed less than regular income.

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immediate charitable income tax deduction.

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satisfaction of knowing your gift will benefit Seton Hall University for generations to come.

Contact us to request a complimentary, no-obligation explanation showing what your payments would be.

Joseph Guasconi (973) 378-9850 joseph.guasconi@shu.edu Nora Rahaim (973) 378-9878 nora.rahaim@shu.edu www.shu.edu/plannedgiving

PRESORTED STD NONPROFIT US POSTAGE PAID STRASBURG, VA PERMIT #201

Department of Public Relations and Marketing 519 South Orange Avenue, South Orange, NJ 07079

YOU AND SETON HALL MAKE A PERFECT PAIR As a thank you to all Pirate donors who make a gift of $25 or more by December 31, we are sending a pair, or two, of exclusive Pirate socks!

Learn more and make your gift at: www.shu.edu/rockthesocks