Hofstra University and the Alumni Organization hosted the 2011 Alumni Awards Dinner at the Garden City Hotel on September 23. Alumni and friends celebrated the personal and professional accomplishments of nine distinguished alumni and friends of Hofstra University.
Alumnus of the Year
The Alumnus/Alumna of the Year Award is given in recognition of exemplary career achievement and/or outstanding service to Hofstra University or the Alumni Organization.
Marilyn B. Monter, J.D. ’76
Marilyn Monter recently completed her term as chair of the Board of Trustees at Hofstra University. Her tenure has been marked by many milestones in Hofstra history, including the accreditation of the Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine from its accreditation, the entrance of its first class this past fall and the recent announcement of a new School of Engineering and Applied Science. “I accept this award not for what I have accomplished, but for what President Rabinowitz and the Board have accomplished these last few years.”
Ms. Monter is executive vice president of The Holiday Organization, Inc., a Westbury-based real estate development company, founded by her father, Gerald Monter, in 1951. The Holiday Organization is the developer of the various Hamlet communities on Long Island, as well as several Colony communities in South Florida. In addition, the company developed three golf course communities on Long Island, which include one private and two public facilities.
After earning a J.D. from Hofstra University School of Law (now the Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University), Ms. Monter served as assistant dean of the law school, and then became an in-house attorney for Allied Chemical Corporation (now Honeywell International, Inc.). She joined The Holiday Organization in 1984.
She is vice president of the Suffolk Y Jewish Community Center, and vice chair of Planned Parenthood of Nassau County. In addition, she is a member of the board at The INN, and has served on the boards of the North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, and Elmezzi Graduate School of Molecular Medicine.
She is a former trustee of Friends Academy. In 2005 Ms. Monter was named a “Woman of Distinction” by Distinction magazine, and in 2008 and 2009 she was honored by Long Island Business News as one of the Top 50 Most Influential Women.
Honorary Alumnus Award
First awarded in 1977, the Honorary Alumnus/Alumna Award is given to friends of Hofstra in recognition of outstanding service to the University or the Alumni Organization.
Tejinder Bindra
Tejinder Bindra is a member of the Hofstra University Board of Trustees and CEO of Jeetish Group of Companies. He co-founded Jeetish, an import company, in 1979 along with his father and brother. Later Jeetish diversified into other businesses but remained under the umbrella of Jeetish Group of Companies, with interests in apparel, export/import and real estate.
He is the founder and president of the Sikh Art & Film Foundation, an organization that has been at the forefront of promoting Sikh heritage, art and culture in the United States. Mr. Bindra sponsors the annual Vaisakhi celebrations at the Consulate General of India. He also partnered with the Jewish Community Relations Council to co-host “Connecting Building Bridges,” an event that was inaugurated jointly by Consul Generals of India and Israel. Mr. Bindra is also the founder and president of the Sikh Organization of New York and has led two very successful delegations to the state government, on behalf of the Sikh- American community. These efforts resulted in Vaisakhi being recognized as a “Sikh American Day” by the state government, and in the introduction of an assembly resolution for the freedom to wear turbans by state police and other state employees.
Sardar Ishar Singh Bindra, Mr. Bindra’s father, endowed the Sardarni Kuljit Kaur Bindra Chair in Sikh Studies at Hofstra University and also established the Guru Nanak Interfaith Prize to promote religious tolerance.
Mr. Bindra is the recipient of the 2011 Ellis Island Medal of Honor and has been honored many times by various Indian and American organizations for his work in the community.
Award for Alumni Achievement
The Award for Alumni Achievement is given to Hofstra alumni who have distinguished themselves in their chosen fields of endeavor and/or rendered exemplary service to Hofstra University.
Andrew F. Corrado, M.B.A. ’92
Andrew F. Corrado is Nassau County market president at Capital One Bank. In this role, he focuses on improving customer experience, growing revenue, leveraging market opportunities, and overseeing and coordinating resources that impact local communities.
Mr. Corrado also serves as senior vice president heading Capital One’s Professional Services and Private Banking Division across the country and is a longtime community advocate. He currently serves as chairman of the board of directors for the Maurer Foundation for Breast Health Education. He was previously secretary and treasurer for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Long Island and continues to serve on that organization’s scholarship committee. In 2010 he was recognized as Man of the Year by Big Brothers Big Sisters of Long Island.
Mr. Corrado graduated from Hofstra with a Master of Business Administration. He is president of the Zarb School of Business Alumni Association and was recently asked to join the advisory council board for the Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine at Hofstra University.
In conjunction with Hofstra’s Zarb School of Business and Capital One Bank’s Community Development Group, Mr. Corrado helped develop the Campus Entrepreneurial Challenge, a unique program that provides coaching and mentoring opportunities to Zarb School students and also provides a financial grant in the form of seed money for a business startup. This program also includes coaching and mentoring opportunities for business students from Uniondale High School.
During his Alumni Awards acceptance speech, Mr. Corrado said, “Over the last several years I have had the pleasure of working with Hofstra in many ways, and every time I do it, I feel I get something out of it. It’s such a great feeling to give back to the community.”
Gerard N. Giovaniello, B.A. ’64
Gerard “Jerry” N. Giovaniello is senior vice president of government affairs and chief lobbyist of the National Association of Realtors® (NAR), the nation’s largest professional association, representing more than 1 million members involved in the residential and commercial real estate industries.
Mr. Giovaniello manages the association’s government affairs staff and serves as NAR’s chief lobbyist for members of Congress from California, Washington, Nevada, Hawaii and Oregon.
Before joining NAR in 1981, Mr. Giovaniello was chief of staff for two members of Congress from California: Rep. Jerry Pettis (R-Calif., 1972-1976) and Rep. Jim Lloyd (D-Calif., 1976-1981). During those nine years, he also taught political science for the Washington, D.C. Semester Program of The Claremont Colleges in California.
Mr. Giovaniello has been a policy analyst and writer for National Journal, a weekly magazine covering the
federal government and public policy issues. After earning a graduate degree in history from New York University, he fulfilled an ROTC commitment to the U.S. Army. He served as an officer in Vietnam and Washington, D.C., from 1968 through 1970.
“I don’t think I’d be standing here if Hofstra didn’t award me a scholarship as a student,” he said upon accepting the Alumni Achievement Award. “Hofstra prepared me to be extremely flexible, and when I look back on the milestones of my career, Hofstra gave me the ability to accomplish them all.” He also thanked his sisters, who took on his responsibilities at home, allowing him to focus on his education.
Nancy F. Kaplan, B.A. ’73; M.A. ’91; Ph.D.
In her acceptance speech, Nancy F. Kaplan reminisced about working as a waitress at the Hofstra University Club, working on Program Board and on Don Kirschner’s In Concert series at the John Cranford Adams Playhouse, as well as her years on WVHC, then the campus radio station. She changed her major seven times before finding her niche in media communications. “My love for learning was instilled at Hofstra, and I chose to give back.”
She is associate professor in the Department of Radio, Television, Film in Hofstra University’s School of Communication, and her research interests include media literacy, new and interactive media, entertainment education, and media accessibility for individuals with disabilities. Dr. Kaplan is founder and faculty adviser of the Hofstra chapter of the Association for Women in Communications (AWC).
Dr. Kaplan is a member of the Directors Guild of America (DGA), National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS), National Academy of Media Arts and Sciences (NAMAS), New York State Communication Association, and Broadcast Education Association (BEA). She has worked as a producer, director, writer, associate director, stage manager and journalist in both studio and field production for commercial television (ABC, CBS), public television (WLIW), and corporate and educational media, encompassing more than 1,500 shows at the network level and more than 4,000 productions on the local level, including work at WWOR, WSNL, WCBS and cable. Some of her network production credits include Good Morning America, One Life to Live, All My Children, SportsBeat with Howard Cosell, As the World Turns, and PrimeTime Live. She has served as a judge for the New York International Film and Television Festival, the Emmy Awards, and the Broadcast Education Association Media Arts Festival.
She produces and facilitates the Annual Jewish Film Festival in Bellmore, New York. Dr. Kaplan is the co-author of the book Student Television in America: Channels of Change (1998), and she also wrote “Multimedia: Information, Knowledge, and Converging Technologies,” a chapter in the book Les Medias et L’information aux Etats-Unis de 1945 a Aujourd’hui (published by Universite Paris — Sorbonne 1997).
Diana E. Lake, B.A. ’68; M.D.
“I decided to become reacquainted with Hofstra, after talking with an associate who was also a Hofstra graduate, and learning about plans for the Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine,” Dr. Diana E. Lake explained when accepting her Alumni Achievement Award. After that she became involved in the University’s Women in Leadership initiative, a professional resource and powerful network for both Hofstra alumnae and current students.
Dr. Lake is a medical oncologist at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), with a practice that is devoted solely to the care of patients with breast cancer. Dr. Lake’s research interests involve all areas of breast cancer but focus mainly on the development of new therapies, prevention of cancer recurrence following surgery, and treatment of recurrent disease.
Working in conjunction with colleagues on the Breast Cancer Medicine Service at MSKCC and as the liaison in breast medicine to the Cancer and Leukemia Group B (a national clinical trial cooperative research group sponsored by the National Cancer Institute), Dr. Lake is involved in clinical trials to develop better hormonal therapies and improved medical approaches for all stages of breast cancer.
She is a member of the Advisory Council to the National Institute of Nursing Research. She has been a member of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Scientific Review Committee, and has previously served on the NIH Cooperative Group Review and the Cancer Education Committees.
Dr. Lake holds a Bachelor of Arts in biology from Hofstra University and a Doctor of Medicine from Chicago Medical School. Her hematology/oncology fellowship training was at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Dr. Lake is presently a clinical associate professor at Weill Cornell Medical College.
Irwin E. Redlener, B.A. ’64; M.D.
Dr. Irwin E. Redlener is president and co-founder (along with singer-songwriter Paul Simon) of the Children’s Health Fund, a philanthropic initiative created to develop health care programs in some of the nation’s most medically underserved urban and rural communities. He is also director of The National Center for Disaster Preparedness at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, and recently served as one of 10 members of the federally appointed National Commission on Children and Disasters.
“I came to Hofstra 50 years ago,” Dr. Redlener said in his acceptance speech. He says his experience in Hofstra’s New College “was a time of profound insight and learning in a new way that influenced the rest of my life.” In a 2010 interview with Hofstra Magazine he had said, “The professors were uniformly remarkable and inspiring. They helped us not only grasp individual topics, but also relate them to larger concepts, and see how different issues and ideas are interconnected.”
Dr. Redlener has published, spoken and testified extensively on the issues of health care for homeless and indigent children, child abuse and neglect, and national health policy. Recognized as a national expert on a range of issues, Dr. Redlener also speaks and writes extensively on national disaster preparedness policies, pandemic influenza, the threat of terrorism in the United States, and the impact and consequences of major natural disasters and related issues.
Dr. Redlener worked extensively in the Gulf region following Hurricane Katrina and helped establish ongoing medical and public health programs. He also organized medical response teams in the immediate aftermath of Sept. 11 and has had disaster management leadership experience internationally and nationally. He is the author of Americans at Risk: Why We Are Not Prepared for Megadisasters and What We Can Do Now, published in August 2006 by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
The nationally acclaimed New York Children’s Health Project, one of the country’s largest health care programs for homeless and disadvantaged children and their families, was developed in 1987 by Dr. Redlener. In 1993 Dr. Redlener served as a member of the White House Task Force on Health Reform, under President Clinton. From 1997 through 2003, Dr. Redlener also had a lead role in the development of The Children’s Hospital at Montefiore, where he served as president and chief spokesman. The hospital remains one of the most advanced and innovative facilities of its kind in the world.
Dr. Irwin E. Redlener earned the M.D. from the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, with pediatric training at Babies and Children’s Hospital of the Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City, University of Colorado Hospital and the University of Miami’s Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami. He holds an honorary Doctor of Science from Hunter College of the City University of New York, among numerous other awards and honors.
Jack A. Weisbaum, B.B.A. ’64
Jack A. Weisbaum has been employed in public accounting for more than 50 years. He is currently CEO of BDO USA, LLP, a position he has held since 2003, and previously served as chairman of the board. He also served as national leader for the firm’s specialized services business line, where he focused on bankruptcy and restructuring. Mr. Weisbaum has been a trusted advisor to hundreds of businesses, ranging from small private companies to major corporations listed on the New York Stock Exchange. He has been honored by various organizations for his contributions to the business community, including the American Jewish Congress, B’nai B’rith, and New York Institute of Credit.
He is professionally affiliated with the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants, serves on the board for the Center for Audit Quality, and serves as associate chair for the Catalyst Awards annual reception.
In addition to his leadership roles at BDO, Mr. Weisbaum and his wife, Mary, are very active in local and national charities. He has received awards of recognition from various charities, including the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
Since earning a B.B.A. from Hofstra in 1964, Mr. Weisbaum has maintained a strong connection to the University. He is currently a member of the Dean’s Advisory Board of the Frank G. Zarb School of Business, and he also established the Jack Weisbaum ’64 Endowed Scholarship.
Honorary Alumnus Award
First awarded in 1977, the Honorary Alumnus/Alumna Award is given to friends of Hofstra in recognition of outstanding service to the University or the Alumni Organization.
Reginald André, B.B.A. ’04
Upon receiving the Young Alumnus Award, Reginald André thoughtfully thanked Hofstra faculty “who make a difference in students’ lives” and his parents “who dragged me, kicking and screaming, from being a brat to someone who can win an award from a prestigious university.”
Mr. André is vice president of the Alternative Investments & Manager Selection (AIMS) Group at Goldman Sachs and Co. in New York City, where he is co-business unit manager for the Risk Management & Analytics teams across the AIMS businesses. Mr. André focuses on leading the capital management, cash and credit management, and communications management functions as well as new business development and infrastructure within the AIMS Private Equity Group. He also serves as deputy diversity champion for the Goldman Sachs’ Investment Management Division. Mr. André joined Goldman Sachs and Co. as an analyst in 2004.
While earning a B.B.A. in finance at Hofstra’s Zarb School of Business, Mr. André served as student president of the Financial Management Association (FMA), a pre-professional organization with the purpose of preparing students for careers in finance. Since graduation, he has maintained a strong connection to the FMA and has applied much of what he learned there to his roles within the Zarb School of Business Alumni Association.
In 2008 Mr. André was asked to help structure and lead the Zarb School of Business Alumni Association’s Career Networking and Advisement Committee. He accepted and went on to sponsor a number of networking events and develop several successful student-focused programs designed to engage Zarb alumni, the Hofstra Career Center and student-leaders. Many of these programs have run every semester, bringing dozens of Zarb alumni back to campus and reaching hundreds of Zarb students.
In 2010 Mr. André was elected to his current role as the Zarb School of Business Alumni Association’s first vice president.
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