William Paterson University

WILLIAM PATERSON UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION RAISES MORE THAN $200,000 AT ANNUAL LEGACY GALA

Legacy Award honorees Frederick Gruel (far left), president and chief executive officer of AAA New Jersey Automobile Club and a member of the William Paterson Board of Trustees, and Gerry Cottrell ’78 (second from right), vice president for finance, Coca-Cola Enterprises, who accepted on behalf of Coca-Cola, with President Arnold Speert (far right) and Sandra Deller (second from left), vice president for institutional advancement (second from left)

Faculty Service Award recipient Cho Kin Leung (second from left) with Distinguished alumni Award recipients (left to right) Alfred W. Piaget ’57, Ed.D.; Marilyn Daniels ’79, M.A. ’80, Ph.D.; Carol J. Ossi ’74; Leslie D. Hirsch ’74; and Robert D. VanLangen ’75

The William Paterson University Foundation raised more than $200,000 at the Foundation’s 19th annual Legacy Award Gala and Silent Auction held on April 25 at The Villa at Mountain Lakes.

The annual event raises funds to support the University’s mission of promoting student success and academic excellence.

Recipients of this year’s Legacy Award were Frederick Gruel, president and chief executive officer of AAA New Jersey Automobile Club, and Coca-Cola Enterprises.

The event also included the presentation of the University’s Distinguished Alumni Awards and Faculty Service Award Recipients were: Marilyn Daniels ’79, M.A. ’80, Ph.D., professor, communication arts and sciences, Pennsylvania State University; Leslie D. Hirsch ’74, president and chief executive officer, Saint Clare’s Health System; Carol J. Ossi ’74, executive director, Accredited Health Services (retired); Alfred W. Piaget ’57, Ed.D., founder and director, Benway School (retired); and Robert D. VanLangen ’75, managing director and chief financial officer, Lynch, Jones & Ryan Inc. (retired).

The Alumni Association Faculty Service Award was given to Cho Kin Leung, Ph.D., retired professor of economics, finance and global business.

“Funds raised by the Legacy Award Gala are an investment in promoting student success through scholarships and academic resources,” says Sandra S. Deller, vice president for institutional advancement and president of the William Paterson University Foundation. “Now, more than ever, students need access to a high-quality education, New Jersey needs educated citizens and New Jersey businesses need an educated workforce."

2009 LEGACY AWARD RECIPIENTS

FREDERICK GRUEL
President and CEO, AAA New Jersey Automobile Club

Frederick Gruel is president and chief executive officer of the AAA New Jersey Automobile Club and its subsidiaries, the AAA New Jersey Insurance Agency and the AAA New Jersey Car Care Center. A trustee and former chairman of William Paterson University's Board of Trustees, he chairs the Board's Institutional Development Committee, and is former chairman of its Finance and Audit Committee. He is also a director of the William Paterson University Foundation.

Coca-Cola Enterprises is the world’s largest Coca-Cola bottler serving North America and Western Europe. On behalf of its 700 employees in New Jersey, Coca-Cola Enterprises has been committed to supporting positive youth development by encouraging and assisting students at William Paterson University and the surrounding community for the past ten years. In addition, as a proud sponsor of the New Jersey Clean Communities, Coca-Cola Enterprises employees participate in educating and promoting recycling and clean ups across the state.

2009 DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARD RECIPIENTS

Marilyn Daniels ’79, M.A. ’80, Ph.D.
Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences, Pennsylvania State University

Marilyn Daniels is a professor of communication arts and sciences at the Pennsylvania State University. She is both a nationally and internationally known expert on using American Sign Language (ASL) to improve hearing children’s literacy. For more than two decades she has been writing, lecturing, and instructing parents, caregivers, and educators on the benefits and use of ASL. Her book, Dancing with Words: Signing for Hearing Children’s Literacy, is one of the most quoted books on this subject. A 1979 graduate of William Paterson with a bachelor’s degree in speech communication, summa cum laude, she earned a master’s degree in communication arts, summa cum laude, from William Paterson University in 1980. Daniels earned her Ph.D. from New York University in 1989.

Leslie D. Hirsch ’74
President and CEO, St. Clare’s Health System

Leslie D. Hirsch is the president and chief executive officer of the Saint Clare’s Health System, a position he has held since May 2008.

Hirsch previously served as president and CEO of Touro Infirmary in New Orleans, and started at Touro in August 2005, just one week before New Orleans took a direct hit from Hurricane Katrina. After the complete evacuation and temporary closure of the hospital, he led Touro’s re-opening and recovery efforts. Hirsch played an active role in the city’s recovery efforts, having served as a member of the Louisiana Recovery Authority Public Health Task Force and in other leadership roles. He holds a bachelor of arts degree in political science from William Paterson University and a master of public administration degree from Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Carol J. Ossi ’74
Co-founder and Executive Director, Accredited Health Services, Inc. (Retired)

Carol J. Ossi is the retired co-founder and executive director of Accredited Health Services, Inc., a company dedicated to the nursing care of the sick in a home care setting. The company, which was sold in 1999, had served the people of northern and central New Jersey for twenty years. Ossi presently serves as vice president of RCO Management, LLC, a company founded by her husband Richard, its president. RCO Management supplies business and sales management and training services to corporations and individuals.

Alfred Piaget retired in July 2007 after fifty years of a multifaceted career in education. Piaget developed a master’s and doctoral program in the new field of educating emotionally disturbed children at Rutgers University Graduate School. He later became director of New York’s Horizon School for children with emotional disorders and neurological impairments. After several years, he returned to New Jersey as director of the Center School at the Fair Lawn Mental Health Center. When that program concluded, he founded (from Center School) The Benway School, a private, not-for-profit program for students with emotional, learning, and/or neurological problems.

Robert D. VanLangen ’75
Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer, Lynch, Jones & Ryan, Inc. (Retired)

Robert D. VanLangen was one of the managing partners and owners, as well as the chief financial officer, of the institutional brokerage firm, Lynch, Jones & Ryan Inc.

Since his retirement in 2003, VanLangen has done extensive volunteer work. He has served as president of the Glen Rock Public Library’s board of trustees and chairman of its capital campaign. As a member of the Securities Industry Association, he initiated—and teaches—students in Glen Rock and in Brooklyn how to invest in the stock market. VanLangen earned a bachelor of science degree in accounting and business administration in three years from William Paterson University while working evenings, full time. He is married to William Paterson alumna, Kathleen and they have four children.

2009 FACULTY SERVICE AWARD RECIPIENT

Cho Kin Leung, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics, Finance, and Global Business (Retired)

Cho Kin Leung served as a professor of economics, finance, and global business at William Paterson University from 1974 to 2008, as well as dean of the Cotsakos College of Business on two separate occasions.

He came to William Paterson to teach introductory, advanced, and graduate courses in economics and business. A specialist in the fields of labor relations and manpower economics, as well as international trade, money, and banking, Leund held numerous positions at the University, including department chair, director of the international management honors program, and academic assistant to the dean of the school of management. Leung has published in both English and Chinese, has been an active member of several professional associations.