NJCU to Graduate 1,877 on May 11

First Doctoral Degrees in Ed Tech Leadership to Be Awarded

HACU President Antonio R. Flores to Receive Honorary Degree

Presidential Medallion for Kathleen DiChiara

New Jersey City University (NJCU) will award 1,877 graduate and undergraduate degrees including its first doctoral degrees in Educational Technology at its commencement ceremony on Wednesday, May 11.  Degrees will be conferred at one ceremony, which will begin at 9:00 a.m. at the Prudential Center in Newark. The ceremony may be viewed live at http://ustream.tv/channel/NJCU-Events.

An honorary doctorate will be presented to Dr. Antonio R. Flores, a staunch advocate of equal rights and opportunity, who is the third and longest-serving president and CEO of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU).  Since joining the organization in 1996, Dr. Flores has worked tirelessly to advance Hispanic higher education success nationally, strengthen governmental collaborations, and solidify international partnerships.

The Presidential Medallion will be awarded to Kathleen DiChiara, F.D.N., I.N.H.C., founding president and CEO of the Community FoodBank of New Jersey whose visionary work has changed the lives of millions.  Her commitment to alleviating hunger and poverty has brought sustenance to New Jersey residents for over four decades.

Undergraduate and graduate degree candidates in NJCU’s William J. Maxwell College of Arts and Sciences, Deborah Cannon Partridge Wolfe College of Education, College of Professional Studies, and the School of Business will participate in one commencement ceremony.  Undergraduate degrees will be conferred upon 1,378 students: 529 bachelor of arts degrees, 16 bachelor of fine arts degrees, eight bachelor of music degrees, 618 bachelor of science degrees, and 207 bachelor of science in nursing degrees.

Graduate degrees will be conferred upon 499 students.  Doctor of Education degrees in Educational Technology Leadership will be awarded to NJCU’s first 12 candidates to earn the degree.  Doctor of Science degrees in civil security, leadership, management and policy will be awarded to 10 doctoral candidates.   Graduate degrees will be conferred upon: 201 master of arts degrees, 110 master of arts in teaching degrees, 39 master of business administration degrees, three master of fine arts degrees, 13 master of music performance degrees, 100 master of science degrees, and 11 professional diplomas in school psychology.

Commencement Order of Exercises

Dr. Sue Henderson, NJCU president, will preside over the commencement ceremony.  Rafael Perez, Esq., chair of the NJCU Board of Trustees, will convey greetings from the trustees.

Senior Class President Richard Pastrana of Jersey City will deliver a “Student Reflection” on behalf of the graduates.

The Presidential Medallion will be presented to Ms. DiChiara by Dr. Henderson. [A biographical sketch of Kathleen DiChiara follows.] 

Dr. Daniel J. Julius, NJCU provost and senior vice president, will give remarks and then confer the doctor of humane letters degree upon Dr. Flores.  Remarks will then be delivered by Dr. Flores.  [A biographical sketch of Antonio R. Flores follows.] 

Dr. Sue Henderson will give the “President’s Charge to the Graduates.”

The deans of the University’s three Colleges and the School of Business will present degree candidates: Dr. Anne Mabry, interim dean of the William J. Maxwell College of Arts and Sciences; Dr. Allan De Fina ‘77, dean of the Deborah Cannon Partridge Wolfe College of Education and the College of Professional Studies; and Dr. Bernard McSherry, interim dean of the School of Business.

Dr. Henderson will then confer the degrees. Students will individually accept their diplomas.

Biographical Sketch of Presidential Medallion Recipient Kathleen DiChiara

Kathleen DiChiara’s visionary work has changed the lives of millions.  Her commitment to alleviating hunger and poverty has brought sustenance to New Jersey residents for over four decades.

In 1975, fueled by her passion, Ms. DiChiara opened the back of her station wagon to launch the Community FoodBank of New Jersey.  There was great demand for the resources provided by the start-up non-profit organization, and it grew quickly.  In 1978, she created the Emergency Food Program of the Archdiocese of Newark, and two years later, the FoodBank opened in a former slaughterhouse in Newark with a staff of five. That year, 70,000 pounds of food were distributed.

Today, the Community FoodBank of New Jersey operates with a staff of 201 and a volunteer group that is more than 40,000 strong.  Last year, equipped with two warehouses and a small fleet of trucks, the organization was able to distribute 45 million pounds of food and groceries to more than 1,500 charities.

A broad selection of supplies and services are offered at the organization’s 280,000 square-foot main warehouse facility in Hillside, including: a commercial kitchen, job training, a food rescue program, Kid’s Cafés, the distribution of children’s clothing and school supplies, and a thrift shop.  Just outside of Atlantic City at the organization’s 28,000 square-foot Pleasantville location, a community garden, and an emergency pantry and food rescue program are popular.

Ms. DiChiara has received many local and national honors and awards, including recognition from three U.S. presidents, three Governors of the State of New Jersey, and the Pope.

The design and implementation of her model programs to alleviate hunger and poverty have been replicated for decades by food banks across the country.  From among the more than 200 executive directors of Feeding America member organizations, Ms. DiChiara was presented the John Van Hengel Fellow Award for her leadership and vision for establishing and operating one of the most innovative and productive food banks in the country.

Ms. DiChiara holds a Bachelor of Science in Education degree from the State University of New York at Oneonta and eight honorary degrees from colleges and universities in New Jersey and New York.

She retired from her role as president and CEO of the Community FoodBank of New Jersey in 2015.

Biographical Sketch of Honorary Degree Recipient

Antonio R. Flores

Dr. Antonio R. Flores, a staunch advocate of equal rights and opportunity, is the third and longest-serving president and CEO of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU).  Since joining the organization in 1996, Dr. Flores has worked tirelessly to advance Hispanic higher education success nationally, strengthen governmental collaborations, and solidify international partnerships.

HACU represents Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) where Hispanics constitute 25 percent or more of the total enrollment at either the graduate or undergraduate level, or both.  New Jersey City University holds HSI designation.

Dr. Flores expanded the role of the Association to include remarkable achievements in the areas of policy and legislation, public service at all levels, and increased annual federal funding for HSIs.  In fact, nearly $3 billion in federal funding has been allocated to HSIs during his tenure.

Under Dr. Flores’s leadership, HACU has become a national organization that represents more than 450 colleges and universities that collectively serve two-thirds of the approximately four million Hispanic students in U.S. higher education across 38 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.  

Dr. Flores began HACU international membership in 1997 with three pioneering institutions.  Today international membership has grown to include approximately 50 members in Spain and in several countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.

An equally significant initiative is HACU’s “affiliation category” for Hispanic-Serving School Districts (HSSDs), which Dr. Flores created in 2008 to reach out to schools at the K-12 level with 25 percent Hispanic enrollment.  By December 2014, this initiative numbered 24 HSSDs in 11 states, and growing.

Dr. Flores holds a Ph.D. in higher education administration from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, a Master of Arts degree in counseling and personnel from Western Michigan University, and undergraduate degrees in business administration and elementary education from Universidad de Guadalajara and Universidad Nacional Pedagógia, Mexico respectively.

A member of numerous associations, including the Washington Higher Education Secretariat, the American Educational Research Association, Independent Sector, and others dedicated to the advancement of higher education, he is the Chairman of the Board of the Adelante! Leadership and Scholarship Fund, and is past chair of the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility.

Dr. Flores has also served on the boards of the American Council on Education, the Mexican-American Cultural Center, the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda, and the National Commission on the Workforce of the American Hospital Association.

He is the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Educational Policy Institute, and was listed among the Top Influential Leaders in the U.S. and Latino Community and the Top 25 Leaders in Education by Latino Leaders magazine.