A Pillar of Rutgers Says Farewell
This spring Executive Vice Chancellor for Administration Gene A. Vincenti will begin a new life chapter: retirement with his wife, Regina, at his side. But his impact on the campus will be felt long after he is gone.
Vincenti arrived on campus in 1967, part of the first generation in his family to get a college education, the fourth son of an Italian immigrant father. Most of today's buildings did not exist, a few were under construction, and the gravel parking lots became mudflats when it rained. After earning a bachelor of arts degree, Vincenti remained on campus to earn a master's in business administration.
His Rutgers work life began in New Brunswick in 1973, but he returned to Newark in 1976 as assistant provost under Provost James Young. Over the decades, Vincenti was also a key member of the leadership teams of Provost Norman Samuels and Chancellor Steven J. Diner. As part of the three teams, he helped spur "the growth of Rutgers-Newark's human, fiscal and physical resources over the last several decades in service to the people of New Jersey," he notes.
Vincenti is especially proud of his contributions toward the "development of a network of green spaces, including the Norman Samuels Plaza and the New Street Plaza, that have helped create the kind of welcoming environment so needed for students, faculty, staff and visitors to this major public urban research campus."
Vincenti also played a key role in the Council for Higher Education in Newark (CHEN) and its efforts to market Newark as a college town.
A celebration of Vincenti's career at Rutgers will be held on May 6; for information, please contact Cheryl Jackson at 973.353.5541.
