Stockton University News - April 2016 - Office of the President

Dear Alumni and Friends,

Greetings from Stockton University! As the spring semester draws to a close, there is a sense of celebration and anticipation across the University. In a couple of weeks, we will be recognizing our Class of 2016 graduates at our Commencement ceremonies. We are so proud of their accomplishments. Below are just a few more examples of recent achievements and new disciplines to celebrate here at Stockton:

School of Business Earns Prestigious AACSB Accreditation

Stockton University’s School of Business on April 18 earned accreditation by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), an international body whose accreditation has been earned by less than 5 percent of the world’s business programs.

Accreditation by the AACSB is considered the hallmark of excellence, and we are proud that Stockton is among such select company worldwide. Dean Janet Wagner and our distinguished faculty deserve to be recognized for the academic pre-eminence of the School of Business, which is one of only five institutions in the United States to have earned this accreditation in the past year.

The School of Business, which was established as a separate school at Stockton in 2007, achieved this recognition after undergoing the rigorous accreditation process, which typically takes five to seven years, Wagner explained.

“AACSB accreditation adds prestige to our graduates’ degrees,” Wagner said. “Prospective students and their families often ask about accreditation, and graduate schools look favorably on degrees from AACSB-accredited schools.

“This provides more global awareness of the high quality of education at Stockton, reflected in the fact that over 75 percent of School of Business courses are taught by full-time faculty members,” Wagner noted.

Learn more about the AACSB International accreditation.

Gala 6_150X150 36th Annual Scholarship Gala Nets Over $275,000 for Students
More than 500 guests gathered in support of Stockton University students on April 16 at the 36th Annual Stockton University Scholarship Benefit Gala by raising a net amount of over $275,000 for the Stockton Foundation.

More than 500 guests gathered in support of Stockton University students on April 16 at the 36th Annual Stockton University Scholarship Benefit Gala by raising a net amount of over $275,000 for the Stockton Foundation.

Students are grateful for and continue to need your support. For some, a college education would not be possible without scholarships. This year $110,000 will be awarded from just the endowment, which has been built over the years from Gala proceeds. In fact, more than $600,000 will be awarded from the Foundation to deserving students.

Gala net proceeds go to the Stockton Benefit Gala Endowed Scholarship Fund,
which last year provided over $100,000 in scholarships to more than 70 students.

Student veterans Maria Polito, a senior Psychology major, Paul Garraty, a junior Criminal Justice major, and Melissa Bounthisane, a senior Finance major, and Tim Girard, a 2012 Stockton graduate, at Stockton’s Scholarship Benefit Gala.

Since 2007, the Benefit Gala has added more than $3 million to the endowment in
support of student scholarships. The Stockton University Foundation has grown
tremendously in the last few years. In 2003, it had less than $3 million in assets and today has reached nearly $30 million.

Several scholarship recipients told their stories at the event held at Stockton Seaview Hotel & Golf Club in Galloway, N.J. Guests circulated and enjoyed live entertainment and special menus in each of four spaces at Seaview.

Entertainment at the Gala included Carnivale, a 12-piece big band; Bianco Martinis, a jazz quartet that performed with professional dancers; and the Marty Mitchell Trio, who performed current hits and invited others to be the lead singer in their band for a song or two.

Many local businesses donated to the silent auction, which was co-chaired by Lisa Johnson of Lisa Johnson Communications and Dennis Hayes, a 1984 Stockton alumnus.

This year, the Gala’s Chair’s Circle sponsors were Dolce Hotels and Resorts and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 351.

Other top sponsors included: the Cooper Levenson law firm, Dr. Howard and Gayle Gross, SOSH Architects, the Azeez Foundation, the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, Chartwells, Follett Higher Education Group, the Saul Ewing LLP law firm, the Atlantic County Utilities Authority, AtlantiCare, Bricklayers & Allied Craftworkers, the D’Amato Law Firm, Eckert Seamans, the Forza Insurance Group, the Fox Rothschild LLP law firm; Fulton Bank of New Jersey, Kramer Beverage Co., Marathon Engineering and Environmental Services, Inc., Northeast Regional Council of Carpenters, Dean and Zoe Pappas, Pennoni, consulting engineers, Pennsylvania Trust, Pepsi Beverage Company, Quantum Capital Management L.L.C., Resorts Casino Hotel, Rothman Institute, Shore Medical Center, South Jersey Industries, Steel Pier, Steve & Cookie’s By the Bay, U.A. Local Union 322 and Walt’s Original Primo Pizza.

Stockton Receives NJDEP Grant Funding to Survey Wildlife Management Areas

The funding totals $632,177, including an in-kind contribution from Stockton in the amount of $179,000. Catherine A. Tredick, assistant professor of Environmental Studies, and Daniel Moscovici, associate professor of Environmental Studies, applied for the grant.

Stockton University has received a grant from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Division of Fish and Wildlife (NJDFW) to discover who is using New Jersey’s wildlife management areas (WMAs); what users are doing in these areas; and how stakeholders feel these areas should be managed. The funding totals $632,177, including an in-kind contribution from Stockton in the amount of $179,000.

The NJDFW currently manages a system of 121 wildlife management areas covering nearly 345,000 acres of the state. These areas were initially established as public hunting and fishing grounds. Over the years, the system has evolved into areas where fish and wildlife habitats are protected and enhanced, while providing recreational and educational opportunities.

Catherine A. Tredick, assistant professor of Environmental Studies, and Daniel Moscovici, associate professor of Environmental Studies, applied for the grant. Tredick and Moscovici, who began the project last year, performed a random statistical sampling of WMAs. They will survey site users in areas including Assunpink, Hammonton Creek, Absecon and Higbee Beach. A team of researchers will be sampling approximately 10-15 days per month simultaneously in northern, central and southern New Jersey.

“A comprehensive research survey of Assunpink wildlife management area was completed in 1974, but no additional research has been conducted in the past 40 years to determine how much use various WMAs receive annually,” Tredick said. “Given that the demand for wildlife related recreational opportunities has grown significantly over the past 40 years, updated information regarding use and acceptable management of these WMAs is needed.”

Hunting and fishing license fees already pay for use of this protected land, Moscovici explained, and the team’s research will explore if there is a willingness of the public to pay for use of the areas.

“The information we collect in this study will assist the NJDEP with developing management goals for these WMAs consistent with both current use and public opinion of how these areas should be used and managed,” said Tredick, who has 15 years of experience in wildlife research and management.

The William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy and Stockton Polling Institute will assist with technology and survey training.

“We are really looking forward to working with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and developing ongoing relationships that can benefit our students and the entire population of New Jersey,” Moscovici said.

Stockton Announces New Academic Program, Concentration

Students will have the chance to explore two additional areas of study as a result of a new concentration in the Sustainability program in the School of Natural Sciences & Mathematics and a new program in the School of Health Sciences.

The Sustainability program in the School of Natural Sciences & Mathematics now offers a concentration in Conservation and Agroecology in response to students’ growing interest in farming and food security.

Agroecology, the study of sustainable food production, goes beyond traditional agriculture by taking a whole-systems approach to include economic, ecological, cultural and social perspectives.

Course topics within the concentration include aquaculture, economic botany, green finance, forest management, fisheries science and regional planning.

In addition, the School of Health Sciences will offer a new Bachelor of Science degree program in the growing field of Exercise Science beginning Fall 2016.

Exercise Science is the study of human movement. It includes interdisciplinary training in academic areas such as exercise physiology, nutrition, biomechanics, strength training, fitness assessment, exercise prescription, anatomy and physiology.

Students will learn to conduct and evaluate health and fitness assessments, design and implement exercise programs based upon assessment findings, and to monitor health and fitness changes and progression over time.

Graduates of an Exercise Science program can work in a variety of careers. The undergraduate degree could also enable interested candidates to go on to advanced degree programs such as Stockton’s Doctorate of Physical Therapy.

The program will begin in September with up to 50 students projected in the first class.
Enrollment will expand gradually over four years, with additional faculty to be hired for a projected enrollment of 200 or more. New facilities, such as a lab for Exercise Science majors, are included in the new academic building, which will open in 2018 on the main campus.