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News Archive
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News Archive
Iona College Celebrates 57th Commencement on May
19
President James A. Liguori, CFC Addresses Graduates New Rochelle, NY, April 25, 2001 - The 57th Annual Commencement Exercises for undergraduates of Iona College will take place on Saturday, May 19 at 10 am on the New Rochelle campus, 715 North Avenue. President James A. Liguroi, CFC, will address the 700 students receiving bachelor's degrees. At 3 pm, President Liguori will address the 275 students receiving graduate degrees. In undergraduate ceremonies, Edward P. Keating will present the student welcome and Heather Lee Ramsdell will present the response. Jennifer A. Libretta will give the student welcome at the graduate ceremony and Jennifer McLaughlin will provide the response. Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degrees will be presented to Mr. Eugene P. Conese, Sr. and Randel A. Falco during the morning ceremony. Regarded as one of the visionary leaders of the American aerospace industry, Conese graduated from Iona exactly half a century ago. An early investor in the Florida aviation industry, his company purchased Greenwich Air Services in 1987 and sold it a decade later to General Electric as the largest company in its field. He currently chairs World Air Lease, Inc., serves as a consultant to General Electric's Engine Services Division, and has been an active member of the board of TWA. Along with his wife, Anna, Conese has been involved in a variety of humanitarian causes; together, they recently received the March of Dimes Philanthropic Award. This loyal and generous alumnus has steadfastly supported the growth and mission of Iona, serving with distinction and commitment as a leading member of the College's Board of Trustees and contributing a pacesetting $1 million for the College's Vision Into Reality capital campaign. Randel A. Falco earned his undergraduate degree in 1975 and MBA in 1979. In his long career with NBC Television, Falco, in 1998, was named president of the NBC Television Network, as well as Chief Operating Officer of NBC's Olympic broadcasting group. He was instrumental in building the storefront studio that is the hallmark of the "Today" show and, as president of NBC's Broadcast and Network Operations, oversaw the facilities and operations of the worldwide network. He is being honored by his alma mater for using the power of television in an open society, not only to entertain and inform, but to probe our institutions and ourselves, and for setting an outstanding example of effective and enlightened leadership, open to new ideas, approaches and possibilities. During the afternoon graduate ceremony at 3 pm, Iona College will award Dr. Claire L. Gaudiani, James P. Hynes and Don McLean Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degrees. As President of Connecticut College, Dr. Gaudiani quintupled its endowment from $30 million to $170 million, secured funding for 26 new chairs and directorships, established four new interdisciplinary academic centers and improved its numeric ranking among the nation's liberal arts colleges, moving from 41st place in selectivity to 14th. She was instrumental in creating a collaboration between the College and the City of New London, and beginning in 1997, as the citizen-volunteer president of its redevelopment authority, Gaudiani helped to stimulate an economic renaissance in the city. Iona College will honor Gaudiani for building a prototype of excellence based on high ideals of social responsibility and a comprehensive global vision, and for "fighting the good fight" to "do justice, only justice." As a successful venture capitalist, James P. Hynes knows sound investing. He has also demonstrated exceptional leadership and generosity to his alma mater as a member of the Board of Trustees and as a major donor to the College's Vision Into Reality capital campaign. He and his wife, Anne Marie, initially supported the campaign with a gift of $1.5 to renovate science facilities in Cornelia Hall; they then stunned the community with their additional gift of $8.5 million, making their gift of $10 million the largest in Iona's history. Hynes is being honored by Iona for his commitment to help develop a new generation of scholars, equipped to meet future challenges. Alumnus Don McLean is honored for using the language of song as a weapon against isolation and indifference, and for leaving a lasting musical legacy that lifts the spirit and touches the soul. He has produced more than 40 albums that capture the struggles and dilemmas of our post-modern age. Thirty years ago, his classic "American Pie" broke new pop music ground and the song continues to be sung and played by new generations of music lovers. McLean has created music that speaks to universal themes of loneliness and loss, love and longing, reality and illusion, death and rebirth, incorporating diverse styles, sensitivity, lyricism and above all, the honesty of its voice.
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