NJCU to Host Reception for Exhibit Honoring the Late Jersey City Mayor Glenn Dale Cunningham

On Tuesday October 9, 2018 at 6 p.m., New Jersey City University will host the opening reception of an exhibit honoring the late Jersey City Mayor Glenn Dale Cunningham.  The artifacts and other mementos were given by the Sandra and Glenn D. Cunningham Foundation.  The reception will be held on the main campus at the third-floor of the Congressman Frank J. Guarini Library building. The event is free and open to all.

Cunningham was the forty-third Mayor of Jersey City (July 1, 2001–May 25, 2004).  A native son of Jersey City, he was born September 16, 1943 and enlisted as a Vietnam-era US Marine (four-years), which included serving as a uniformed usher at the funeral of President John F. Kennedy and was followed by twenty-five years in the Jersey City Police Department (JCPD), where he was a police sergeant and Homicide Detective, rising to the rank of Captain.  Glenn graduated from Jersey City State College with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science in June 1974.  He also was a graduate of Jersey City Public Schools: P.S. 29, P.S. 14, and Snyder High School.

Cunningham also served as Jersey City council president and on the Hudson County Board of Chosen Freeholders (1975-1978), both elected posts, until leaving the JCPD to become director of the Hudson County Public Safety Office—a position he held until his selection by President Bill Clinton in 1996 to become US Marshal.

He was the first African American Mayor of Jersey City, the state’s second-largest city in New Jersey (2001-2004).  Cunningham also served in the New Jersey Senate (January 13, 2004 – May 23, 2004).

Cunningham died at Greenville Hospital in Jersey City of a heart attack on May 23, 2004.  He was a Master Mason and full member of the Most Worshipful Oriental Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons in Newark and was buried with Masonic honors in a funerary procession.

The Sandra and Glenn D. Cunningham Foundation (SGCF) was founded shortly after Glenn D. Cunningham was elected as Mayor of Jersey City.  SGCF was a not-for-profit organization created to positively impact the growth and advancement of Jersey City and Bayonne New Jersey.  The focus of SGCF was to enhance the lives of highly motivated high school graduates that faced challenging circumstances which may hinder their access to educational resources. The Foundation provided financial assistance and a one-on-one mentor relationship with positive roles models to guide youths in reaching their educational goals.

New Jersey City University was fortunate in that NJ State Senator Sandra B. Cunningham saw fit that NJCU house documents, plaques, awards, and other mementos from the Foundation’s collection. 

Sue Henderson, President of NJCU noted that, “We are grateful for Senator Cunningham’s donation, which will serve as the basis of a rotating permanent collection for students and visitors to enjoy. Glenn Cunningham’s contribution to the progress of Jersey City is remarkable. This collection shares the legacy of his good work.”