C.W. Post College of Management to Honor Community Leaders

Nassau County Executive Thomas R. Suozzi and three prominent alumni of Long Island University will be honored by the College of Management Alumni Chapter of the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University at a fundraiser on Sunday, October 19, 2003.

The event, which is designed to recognize outstanding contributors to the C.W. Post and Long Island communities, will also support scholarships for students pursuing degrees in accounting, business, criminal justice, health care and public administration, and social work in the College of Management.

The fifth annual event, titled "Celebrating Distinguished Service to the Community," will be held at Harrison House in Glen Cove at 1 p.m. and will honor Thomas R. Suozzi, the youngest distinguished C.W. Post alumni Vincent Henry, Ph.D. (class of 1989), a law enforcement expert; M. Vicki Wacksman, Ph.D. (class of 1978), a management consultant and co-founder of the National Association of Women Business Owners; and Mary M. Lai, chief financial officer for Long Island University and a 1942 graduate of Long Island University’s Brooklyn Campus.

At the age of 31, Tom Suozzi was elected Mayor of the City of Glen Cove, and in 2001, was elected Nassau County Executive. He is the youngest person ever to hold each office. During four terms as mayor, Tom Suozzi balanced each city budget he administered, turned a multi-million dollar deficit into a surplus, and gave Glen Cove its highest bond rating since the 1970's-all without raising taxes for seven consecutive years. A recognized environmentalist, Suozzi is the recipient of many awards for his efforts. In 1998, Glen Cove was designated as one of only 16 communities in the United States to be a Brownfields Showcase Community, a national model for environmental and economic development. In 2001, Suozzi made history in the county executive race when he defeated his Republican opponent 2-to-1 in a county with a wide Republican majority. Nassau County, with a population of over 1.5 million, is larger than seven states; and its $2.2 billion budget is larger than 16 states. Suozzi was born and raised in Glen Cove, New York. He graduated from Chaminade High School, Boston College, and Fordham University Law School. He resides in Glen Cove with his wife, Helen, and his two children, Caroline and Joseph.

A resident of East Quogue, NY, Dr. Vincent Henry is an Associate Professor of Criminal Justice and Sociology at Pace University. He is a retired Sergeant, Special Assignment from the New York City Police Department, where he served as commanding officer of the Special Projects Unit in the Police Commissioner's Office of Management Analysis and Planning as well as of the Police Academy's Education Support Section. While studying toward a bachelor's and master's degree in criminal justice at C.W. Post, Dr. Henry earned numerous academic awards, honors and scholarships, including a Fulbright Scholarship at the Centre for Australian Public Sector Management at Griffith University in Australia. He received C.W. Post's Outstanding Accelerated Student Award in 1987 before graduating with a perfect 4.0 grade point average in 1989. Dr. Henry obtained a Ph.D. in criminal justice from the City University of New York (John Jay) in 2001, and earned an M.Phil. in criminal justice from CUNY in 1996. A recognized expert in the private security field, he also holds the American Society for Industrial Security's Certified Protection Professional (CPP) credential. His studies returned him to C.W. Post in 1991, when he became an adjunct professor of criminal justice. He has also taught at St. John's University. Dr. Henry is widely published and a highly respected authority on criminal justice, is a consultant to a number of police agencies and municipalities in the United States and abroad, and has been the featured speaker at numerous police conferences. His publications include The Compstat Paradigm: Management Accountability in Policing, Business and the Public Sector (Looseleaf Law Publishers) and several forthcoming works that include: "Death Work: Police and the Psychology of Survival" (Oxford University Press) and "Police, the World Trade Center Attacks and the Psychology of Survival: Implications for Clinical Practice."

For decades, Dr. M. Vicki Wacksman -- founder and president of Wacksman Associate's Ltd., a management-consulting and training firm based in Dix Hills -- has used her business acumen to help further other women's careers. She is a co-founder of the Long Island chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners, the Suffolk County Women Business Enterprise Coalition, and the New York State Association of Black Women Owned Enterprises, Inc. She is the recipient of more than 90 awards, citations and proclamations for her work, including the National Organization of Women's "Women of Power and Influence Award" and the U.S. Small Business Administration's "Small Business Minority Advocate Award." Dr. Wacksman has truly established herself as an economic reformer. Her supportive endeavors include the design of a grant program to help micro business enterprises compete for corporate contracts as well as establishing the innovative "Mind Over Matter" academic scholarship which has opened the doors to numerous job opportunities for persons with disabilities. Dr. Wacksman earned an M.P.A. from C.W. Post and holds a bachelor's degree in sociology from SUNY's Empire State College. Her doctorate is in public administration from Nova University. She and her husband, Dr. Sheldon M. Wacksman, live in Dix Hills, NY. They have six children and five grandchildren.

Mary Lai earned a B.S. in accounting and economics from the Brooklyn Campus of Long Island University, graduating magna cum laude in 1942. She worked for a short time as a public accountant for Arthur Andersen LLP, but returned to the Brooklyn Campus at the request of then president of Long Island University, Tristram Walker Metcalfe. She served as bursar and then vice president for finance and treasurer, a position she would hold for the next 55 years. (She plans to retire from her current position later this year, in 2003.) She is credited with guiding the institution through times of tremendous growth and fiscal turmoil, all while raising two sons, William and Richard, and being a devoted grandmother to Allison, Danielle and Thomas. During her tenure, Mrs. Lai has seen enrollment grow from 800 students in 1946, to more than 31,000 at present.  Her years of hard work and dedication have earned her the respect of colleagues across the University and throughout the metropolitan area. Her service has been acknowledged through numerous University awards and ceremonies. In 1978, she received the Distinguished Alumna Award from the Brooklyn Campus. She also received the Trustees Award in 1981 and an honorary doctorate from the Brooklyn Campus in 1986. In 1996, the structure that houses the University's financial operation was named the Mary M. Lai Finance Building. In addition to the honors bestowed upon her by the University, she received the NACUBO Distinguished Business Officer Award in 1987, the Peat Marwick/EACUBO Distinguished Service Award in 1989 and the Soroptimist Woman of Distinction Award in 1991.

Entertainment for the College of Management Alumni Chapter fundraiser will be provided by Eric Johnson, renowned jazz guitarist, and his group.

For additional information about tickets and reservations, contact Carol Picarello in the College of Management Alumni Chapter at (516) 299-2420; fax 299-2640, or email carol.picarello@liu.edu.