Bene Merenti Medal | Forty Years
Janis Barry • Joseph J. Lawton III  • Hans V. Minnich
Robert K. Moniot • Hrishikesh Vinod

Bene Merenti Medal | Twenty Years
Elaine Black • Andrew H. Clark  • George E. Demacopoulos
Sebastian Douglas • J. Andrew Foster • Caroline M. Gentile
Mary T. Harrington • Debra Wallace Hertz • Amir Idris
Maureen Janeski • Javier Jiménez Belmonte • Gregory Jones
James Russell Kelly • Thomas H. Lee • Damian M. Lyons
Catherine Powell • Monica Rivera Mindt • Casey Ruble
Booi Themeli • Karen E. Williams

Archbishop Hughes Medal | Forty Years 
Anna Maria Conte • Carol Murabito

Archbishop Hughes Medal | Twenty Years 
Renaldo D. Alba • John Bach • Alan Cafferkey
Jessica Collins • Tara Czechowski • Denise Daniel-Mack
Stafford Davis • Ursula J. Duran • Janeira Farrano-Martinez
Francoisline Joy Freeman • Audrey Glassman • Raul Herrera
Patrick Holt • Claudia Mancia Parone  • Abel Ponce Montez
Darin Neely • Francis Petit • Francesca A. Riese
Gerald A. Salvador • Charles-Henri Sanson • Gil Severiano
Michael Szabo

Sursum Corda Award
Robert F. Dineen • Verenika Lasku • Carolyn Velazquez-Atis

The 2019 Convocation, held in the School of Law’s Costantino Room at the Lincoln Center Campus, paid tribute to the recipients of the Bene Merenti medal and the Archbishop Hughes medal, awarded to faculty and staff, respectively, to mark 20 and 40 years of service at Fordham.

The event also honored three recipients of the Sursum Corda award, given in recognition of outstanding contributions to the life and mission of the University: James Higgins, foreperson of facilities operations at Lincoln Center; Gregory Pappas, assistant vice president for student affairs and dean of student services; and Nancy Perri, senior executive secretary in the controller’s office.

Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, prefaced his Convocation remarks by acknowledging the accomplishment the women’s basketball team—“among the most wonderful and interesting students we have”—before turning to the achievements of the day’s honorees.

“You are our treasure,” Father McShane said to the recipients. “The treasure that makes it possible for us to form young women and men to be women and men for others.”

“You make the routine miraculous, and you make everything at the University an occasion of grace because of the way in which you go about your work and the generous hearts you have,” he continued.

Nicholas J. Lombardi, S.J., adjunct instructor of computer and information science, drew a rousing cheer from his fellow Jesuit scholastics as he accepted his Bene Merenti Medal for 40 years of service. Father Lombardi first came to Fordham in 1958 as a freshman at Fordham Prep, where he later returned to teach classics before joining the University faculty in 1996.

“It’s great to see that so many of my friends are still here, alive and thriving,” Father Lombardi said.

Father McShane lauded the awardees for not only touching every aspect of life at Fordham, but for also extending their good works to the world at large.

Byron E. Shafer, Ph.D., associate professor emeritus of theology, has exemplified this commitment over his long and varied career. Shafer joined Fordham in 1968 as one of the first Protestants in his department, and later became well known to New York City radio listeners as a co-host of Religion on the Line, a program on religious and social issues featuring a priest, a rabbi, and a minister.

In addition to directing the University’s Middle East Studies program and focusing his scholarly energies on Ancient Egypt, Shafer also found time over the years to serve as pastor at Rutgers Presbyterian Church on the Upper West Side and as a visiting scholar at United Theological College in Bangalore, India.  But he always returned to Fordham, where he continues to teach senior citizens in the College at 60 program.

“Although I’ve been around more or less for 51 years, I finally made it to 40,” he said with a laugh upon receiving the Bene Merenti Medal.

Reflecting on her four decades at Fordham, Mary Chilton Callaway, associate professor of theology, observed a special quality present in both the theology department and the University as a whole. “It’s the willingness to learn and grow and change,” she said.

One change, she said, are the ever-growing challenges her students face—and not just from her lessons on the Hebrew Bible and the Book of Jeremiah. Callaway, a Bene Merenti Medalist, has cherished the opportunity “to help students with things beyond just the Old Testament—navigating their lives. For me, that’s a wonderful part about being at Fordham: when they come to my office and can open up about things,” she said.

“That’s what has kept me here for 40 years. I feel like I’m doing something helpful and worthwhile.”

Bene Merenti Medal | 40 Years
Mary Chilton Callaway
William Conlon
Celia B. Fisher
Richard Fleisher
Anne Golomb Hoffman
D. Frank Hsu
Nicholas Lombardi, S.J.
Julia H. Mueller
Byron E. Shafer
Elizabeth Stone

Bene Merenti Medal | 20 Years
Maureen P. Benej
Mary Bly
Richard S. Carnell
Martin Chase, S.J.
Christopher M. Cullen, S.J.
John Drummond
Margo A. Jackson
Duncan R. James
Gyula Klima
Ji Seon Lee
Michael W. Martin
James McCann
Marjorie R. Saltzberg
Mark S. Silver
Lyn K. Slater
Gemma Solimene

Archbishop Hughes Medal | 40 Years 
Serafina De Gregorio

Archbishop Hughes Medal | 20 Years
Maria Aponte
Jedd S. Applebaum
Marianna Balquiedra
William J. Campbell
Damarie Cardona
Jim Castillo
Vincenza Corcoran
Lois D’Amore
Fleurin Eshghi
Monica Esser
Leslie I. Gillette
Helene Jacoby Madigan
Francis C. Katai
Ruben Mendez
Stephanie Milizia
James O’Hara
Ramón Pérez
Lewis Price
Lucille I. Santos
William R. Schneider
Matthew Schottenfeld
Joanne Schwind
Michael Tavas
Timothy W. Zay

Sursum Corda Award
James Higgins
Gregory Pappas
Nancy Perri

–Michael Garofalo

The gathering is an annual occasion to honor employees with Bene Merenti and Archbishop Hughes medals for 20 or 40 years of service.

Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, noted that this year the celebration was taking place in a world gripped by anxiety and worry. Such uncertainties make it even more important honor the professors, lecturers, caretakers, designers, fundraisers, bursars, DJs, secretaries, managers, librarians, public safety officers, and more who help make the University function.

They’re a “paradoxical lot,” he said—wonderfully adaptive and yet unchanging, and remarkably diverse but united.

“In response to the many challenges that an accelerating, evolving world has presented to them, they have displayed a rare combination of wisdom and courage. They have brought to the University a broad array of interests and talents.  In spite of this, they are and have remain united in their devotion to the mission of the University,” he said.

“Therefore, we celebrate unity in diversity, and a constancy grounded in our history that is combined with a zest for new challenges.”

Many of the honorees were joined by children and grandchildren. When Aleksander Rebisz was honored with a Sursum Corda Award for outstanding contributions to the University, his son-in-law Matt Kraeger hoisted aloft Rebisz’ 2-year-old grandson Mason for a better view, to the delight of the audience.

Jonathan M. Crystal, Ph.D., associate professor of political science, associate vice president and associate chief academic officer, said that when he began his career at Fordham in 1997, his oldest son Nathan was just a year old. On Sunday, Nathan was unable to see his dad accept a Bene Merenti award because he was away at college. Crystal, who was lauded in a citation as the “keystone” of the University’s academic enterprise, said it was a little frightening how quickly time had passed.

“To be surrounded by all of my colleagues is an amazing feeling. This is one of the best days of my life,” he said.

“If you ask most people in the world, ‘do you love the place you work,’ maybe they like their job and maybe they like their colleagues,” he said. “But people who work at Fordham love Fordham.”

Georgine Barna Hoar, an adjunct professor of Spanish who was awarded a Bene Merenti medal for her four decades years of service, credited the teaching profession with having kept her young. She and her husband Leo Hoar, Ph.D., professor emeritus who retired in 2015 after teaching Spanish for 53 years, estimated that they have collectively served 12,500 students—the same number of chairs set up for Commencement Day on Edwards Parade.  Each semester on the last day of class, she said she makes a point to thank her students for all that they’ve taught her.

“In practicing a language, it helps to talk about things that interest them,” she said. “I don’t know what programs they watch and what concerts they go to, so they tell me, and it makes them feel good because they have helped me to understand what’s important to them.”

For John Platt, director of communications at WFUV (90.7), the afternoon was slightly bittersweet, as his colleague in 20 years of service and fellow honoree, Rich Conaty, the host of The Big Broadcast, died in December.

He was grateful for the stability that WFUV has provided him. In commercial radio, where he worked previously, he noted that the field is so unpredictable, time can feel as if it should be measured “in dog years.”

“If you look at my resume prior to WFUV, it’s a very checkered career. Ownership changes, management changes, program directors change,” he said. “To be at WFUV [this long]with a team of people who are all doing radio for its own sake . . . is about the most gratifying way you can make a living.”

Dominique R. Jenkins, a friend of Assistant Director of Enrollment Services Melissa L. Scriven, an Archbishop Hughes Medal winner for 20 years of service, marveled at how the awardees— though occasionally humbled to be in the spotlight—showed “pride in everything they do.”

“Why leave if you work in such a great environment, with a great group of people?” she said.

Bene Merenti Medal | Forty Years

Bruce F. Berg | Professor of Political Science
Constance W. Hassett | Professor of English
Georgine Barna Hoar | Adjunct Professor of Spanish
Gail D. Hollister | Archibald R. Murray Professor of Law
Katherin Marton | Professor of Finance and Business Economics
E. Doyle McCarthy | Professor of Sociology and American Studies
Marie A. Sheehan | Adjunct Assistant Professor, College at 60
David P. Stuhr | Associate Professor Emeritus, Faculty of Business, Retired Faculty Advisor
Anthony Tartaglia | Adjunct Instructor of Mathematics
Frank M. Werner | Associate Professor of Finance and Business Economics

Bene Merenti Medal | Twenty Years

Stephan Apicella-Hitchcock | Artist-in-Residence
Cheryl G. Bader | Clinical Associate Professor of Law
Paul M. Bochner | Clinical Assistant Professor of Taxation
Colin M. Cathcart | Associate Professor of Visual Arts
Jeffrey E. Cohen | Professor of Political Science
Carole Beth Cox | Professor of Social Work
Jonathan M. Crystal | Associate Professor of Political Science, Associate Vice President and Associate Chief Academic Officer
Maddy Cunningham | Associate Professor of Social Work
Pearl Fisk | Adjunct Assistant Professor of Social Work
Warren Dana Holman | Clinical Professor of Social Work
Francesca Parmeggiani | Associate Professor of Italian and Comparative Literature
S. Elizabeth Penry | Assistant Professor of History
Aditya N. Saharia | Associate Professor of Information Systems
Kieran Scott | Associate Professor of Religious Education
Yvette Michelle Sealy | Associate Professor of Social Work
Daniel Soyer | Professor of History
Kirsten Swinth | Associate Professor of History and American Studies
David S.L. Wei | Professor of Computer and Information Science
Greg Winczewski | Lecturer of Economics, Director International Political Economy Program 

Archbishop Hughes Medal | Forty Years 

John M. Algieri | Director of Budget Development

Archbishop Hughes Medal | ​Twenty​ ​Years​

Bob Ahrens | Executive Sports Producer, WFUV 
Hopeton Campbell | Director of the Edward A. Walsh Digital Media Lab
Marcos Antonio Carrasco | Information Technology Analyst/Manager
Joan P. Cavanagh | Director of Interfaith Programs, Director of Campus Ministry at Westchester 
Rich Conaty | WFUV Host, The Big Broadcast
Frank A. DeOrio | Director of University Procurement
Aldo Di Vitto | Facilities Architect
Melissa D. Forston | Senior IT Business Analyst/Manager
Gloria L. Guzman | Assistant Director of Budget Operations
John C. Hurley Jr. | Technical Support Manager, University Libraries
Daniel Thomas Kiely | Director of Public Safety at Rose Hill
Michael Lambros | Caretaker, The Louis Calder Center
Yael Mandelstam | Head of Cataloging, T.J. & Nancy Maloney Law School Library
Kimberly M. McKeon | Senior Director of Development Research and Prospect Management
Jan Miner | Assistant Dean and Director of Field Instruction, Graduate School of Social Service and Adjunct Instructor of Social Work
Maureen Murray | Nurse Practitioner, University Health Services
Norma L. Pérez | Office Manager, Information Technology Department, School of Law
John Platt | Director of Communications, WFUV
Marguerite Power | Financial Aid Supervisor, Graduate School of Social Service
Eric J. Sanders | Senior Associate Academic Advisor for Student-Athletes
Michael J.K. Schiumo | Assistant Dean of Alumni Relations and Development, School of Law
Melissa L. Scriven | Assistant Director of Enrollment Services
Gilbert M. Stack | Director of Assessment and Accreditation, Gabelli School of Business
Melanie Teagle | Senior Designer, Office of Marketing and Communications
Wendy Viggiano | Enrollment Service Administrator – Technical Support
Richard A. Waite | Director of University Conference Services

Sursum Corda Award

Marc Christopher Canton | Director of University Transportation
Susan Bair Egan | Associate Dean and Director of the M.S.W. Program, Graduate School of Social Service
Aleksander Rebisz | Refrigeration Engineer

Yesterday’s Fordham University Convocation recognized the service of 20 and 40-year employees at the university. Below is a complete list of those honored:

Archbishop Hughes Medal | (40-Year Award)
Melba F. Chamberlain | Associate Director for the Masters of Law Program | School of Law
Estelle Fabian | Assistant Dean of the Masters of Law Program | School of Law
Joan Mastrangelo | Director of University Collections
Michael Wares | Assistant Director for Technical Services | University Libraries

Archbishop Hughes Medal | (20-Year Award)
Robert Allen | Deputy Director | Quinn Library
Garrett Barker | Assistant Director of Custodial Services at Rose Hill
Biswa P. Bhowmick | Assistant Dean/Associate Director Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP)
Michele C. Burris | Associate Vice President | Student Affairs
Margaret “Peggy” Cuskley | Administrative Assistant | Department of English
Gene Fein | Director of Academic Services | Enrollment Group
Kenneth J. Lau | Program Director for the Children and Families Institute for Research, Support and Training (Children FIRST) | Graduate School of Social Service
Edward Peter Mix | Science Reference Librarian
Cornelius “Corny” O’Connell | WFUV Radio Host
Joseph Scaltro | Senior Project Manager | Office of Facilities Management
Maria G. Terzulli | Administrator | The Francis and Ann Curran Center for
American Catholic Studies

The Bene Merenti Medal | (40-Year Award)
Susan Fahrenholtz | Adjunct Professor | Department of Natural Sciences
Fordham College at Lincoln Center
Rowland Hughes | Professor of Education
Mary Bradley McElligott | Lecturer | Department of English
Robert J. Penella | Professor of Classics and Chair | Department of Classics

The Bene Merenti Medal | (20-Year Award)
Christopher R. Blake | Joseph Keating, S.J., Distinguished Professor of Business
Fordham Schools of Business
Janet DiLorenzo | Clinical Assistant Professor of Marketing | Fordham Schools of Business
Kevin T. Jackson | Professor of Law and Ethics | Fordham Schools of Business
Deborah W. Denno | Arthur A. McGivney Professor of Law
Marlene Cooper | Associate Professor | Graduate School of Social Service
Thomas S. DeLuca Jr. | Professor of Political Science | Director of International Studies Program
Kenneth E. Dupuy | Adjunct Instructor of Philosophy | Fordham College of Liberal Studies
Susan Celia Greenfield | Associate Professor of English
Elizabeth A. Johnson, C.S.J. | Distinguished Professor of Theology
Judith Jones | Associate Professor of Philosophy
Héctor Lindo-Fuentes | Professor of History
Edward John Van Buren | Professor of Philosophy | Director of Environmental Policy
Sursum Corda Award
Georgina Calia Arendacs | Director of Equity and Equal Opportunity
Steven Madigan | Electrician

Congratulations to the employees and their families.