ALBERT L. COLSTON, Ph.D. Creator & Founding Principal of Brooklyn Tech Albert L. Colston was the creator and founding principal of Brooklyn
Technical High School. Dr. Colston's commitment to technical
education and his tremendous strength as an educator enabled him to
generate the support for the building of the current Tech facility. Dr.
Colston s vision, leadership, commitment and dedication to the
concept of technical education was the driving force and the
inspiration for the continued development of Brooklyn Technical High
School. He is recognized as being a visionary in secondary technical
education in New York City.
FRANK A CIPRIANI, Ph.D., 51 President, SUNY Farmingdale Dr. Frank A. Cipriani is the fifth President of the State University of
New York at Farmingdale. He is currently the most senior President
among the thirty State operated campuses of SUN), and celebrated
completion of his 20th year as President of SUN) Farmingdale on
April 27 1998. Dr. Cipriani began his career at SUN) Farmingdale
as an Asst. Dean in 1964 with the School of Continuing Education.
He rapidly rose through the ranks, moving in 1965 into the positions
of Exec. Asst. to the President and, two years later, Vice President for
Administration. He also holds the rank of Professor of History and
Political Science at SUN) Farmingdale since 1967.
ADAM J. CLRILLO, 29 Educator, Coach, Mentor Adam J. Cirillo has achievements in the fields of
education, business,
community service, engineering and the field of football, for which he
is best known. The accomplishments of Brooklyn Tech football teams
and players during his 30 years of coaching are unmatched. Mr.
Cirillo's efforts on and off the field turned boys into men. His players
attended the best of colleges - Princeton, Yale, Harvard, Penn, the
service academies, Cornell, Colgate and of course, his alma mater,
Lafayette. His players excelled in their careers as company CEOs,
head of the NY Stock Exchange, teachers, businessmen, coaches,
engineers to mention a few. Mr. Cirillo S legacy as a teacher, coach
and leader has earned him recognition as Mr. Tech .
GENERAL JAMES E. DALTON, 49 USAF Four Star General A distinguished graduate of West Point with a much decorated 31
year Air Force career, General James F. Dalton served as a Chief of
Staff Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) and with
the US. Delegation for the negotiation of the SALT I Arms Control
Agreement with the Soviet Union. He holds the Legion of Merit with
Oak Leaf Cluster, Distinguished Flying Cross, Bronze Star Medal,
and three awards of the nation s highest peacetime medal: the Defense
Distinguished Service Medal.
BERNARD FRIEDLAND, Ph.D., 48 Engineer, Author, Distinguished Professor Bernard Friedland is a Distinguished Professor in the Electrical and
Computer Engineering Dept. at the New Jersey Institute of Technology
where he teaches system and control theory and engages in research in
its applications. His honors include a National Science Foundation
Fellowship, the Illig Medal in Applied Science and the Oldenberger
Medal of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
MEREDITH C. GOURDINE, Ph.D., 48 Engineer, Inventor, Olympic Medalist A creative inventor with a PhD in Engineering Physics from the
California Institute of Technology, Dr. Gourdine holds over 70
foreign and US. patents in electrogosdynamics, vortadynamics, and
thermovoltaic cells. As a member of the US. Olympic Team at
Hellsinki, Sweden, he won a silver medal in the broad jump
competition. He was a Guggenheim Fellow and a member of the
Science and Engineering Hall of Fame, the National Academy of
Engineering and the Black Inventors Hall of Fame.
STUART KESSLER, CPAJPPS, 47 Chairman, American Institute of CPAs A nationally respected tax practitioner and financial planner, Mr.
Kessler was a founding partner of the largest one office accounting
firm in the world and was elected Chairman of the 330,000 American
Institute of Certified Public Accountants. A graduate of Brooklyn
College, with service in the US. Air Force, he also holds an MBA
from Baruch College, a JD from Brooklyn Law School and an LLM in
taxation from NYU
MARVIN KITMAN, 47 TV Critic, Author An acclaimed humorist and TV critic,. Mr. Kitman is the author of
eight books and his nationally syndicated column is a comprehensive
chronicle of 30 years of television and culture. A City College
graduate, he was awarded the Folio Award (1988), Society of the
Silurians Humorous Writing Award (1991), the Townsend Harris
Medal (1992), and Special Commentary Award (1993).
SAL RESTIVO, Ph.D., 58 Professor, Author, Researcher Dr. Sal Restivo is Professor of Sociology and Science Studies in the
Department of Science and Technology Studies at Rensselaer
Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. He has been a leading
researcher in the sociology of science and mathematics for more than
two decades. He is the founding director of the Ph.D. program in
Science and Technology Studies at Rensselaer, one of the first Ph.D.
programs in this field in the world He has published seven books,
including The Soul Relations of Physics, Mysticism and
Mathematics has become a classic. His work on the sociology of
mathematics has been extremely influential in the field of mathematics
education worldwide.
GEORGE WALD, Ph.D., 23 Biologist, Nobel Laureate George Wald retired in 1977 as the Higgins Professor of Biology at
Harvard University, having held that chair since 1968. The joint
winner of a Nobel Prize in 1967 for his research on how the eye
passes images to the brain, Dr. Wald spent 43 years doing research
and teaching at Harvard University. Dr. Wald's chief contribution
was to help understand how light activates photoreceptive cells in the
retina, causing the molecular changes that lead to impulses along the
optic nerve to the brain. Dr. Wald also carried out significant
research about the way Vitamin A affects vision and about the roles of
various cells in the perception of colors and black and white vision.
CCL. KAROL J. BOBKO, 55 NASA Astronaut A NASA astronaut who logged 386 hours in space on three missions,
Cal. Bobko was the pilot of the maiden voyage of the spacecraft
Challenger, the mission that conducted the first shuttle space walk. He
was the commander of the spacecraft Atlantis first flight. A member
of the Air Force Academys first graduating class, he holds the
Distinguished Flying Cross and two Meritorious Service Medals. He
was awarded the Air Force Academy s prestigious Jabara Award in
1983. DONALD L. KLEIN, Ph.D., 49 Silicon Gate Transistor Inventor The leader of the team at Bell Telephone Laboratories that created the
polysilicon Field-Effect Transistor in 1966, Dr. Klein s advance has
been the key to very large scale integrated circuits and the
advancement of computers and communications technologies. The
innovative breakthrough was to employ polycrystalline silicone in a
self-aligned process to replace the previously used thin metal films. It
has become the standard process for manufacturing all silicon
semiconductor memory and microprocessor circuit chips. SGT. MEYER S. LEVIIN, 34 Decorated Air Force Hero Brooklyn Tech s first World War II hero, Air Force Master Sergeant
Levin was a much decorated B-I 7 bombardier in the Pacific Theater.
He flew in the first planes to attack the enemy after Pearl Harbor and
miraculously escaped death in the ill-fated flight that claimed Captain
Cohn Kellys life. On January 7, 1943, his plan ran out of fuel and
the crew was ordered to parachute to safety. But, Sgt. Levin remained
onboard long enough to drop the life raft that saved the crew s lives.
He did not survive the crash.
HARVEY LTCHTENSTEIN, 46 President, Brooklyn Academy of Music An impresario with a world-wide reputation as an innovator in the
arts, Mr. Lichtenstein guided the Brooklyn Academy of Music for
thirty-two years, creating America s leading contemporary performing
arts institution. From 1971 to 1973 he served as the American
Director of Italys Spoleto Festival and created the cutting edge Next
Wave Festival at BAM in 1983. His extraordinary contribution to the
arts has been recognized in awards including Sweden s Order of the
Polar Star and the induction into the Chevalier French Legion of
Honor.
LEONARD RIGGIO, 58 Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Barnes & Noble, Inc. Leonard Riggio began his career as a clerk at the NYU bookstore.
Convinced he could provide better service to students, he opened a
competing store in 1965. His business thrived and, in 1971, he bought
the flagship Barnes & Noble bookstore. He changed the book industry
with such innovations as extensive selection of books, discounts, and
comfortable stores that have become community institutions. His
revolutionary concepts have made Barnes & Noble the worlds largest
and most respected bookseller.
HARRY
CHAPLN, 60 Entertainer & Humanitarian A seasoned performer while still at Tech, Mr. Chapin s career
included gold album records and his famous number one hit, Cat s
in the Cradle, an Oscar-nominated documentary film, a Tony-
nominated stage show and an Emmy-winning children ~ television
program. In 1975, he founded World Hunger Year, a charity to fight
international famine,, and, in 1981 at the height of his popularity and
influence, Mr. Chapin was killed in an automobile accident.
JOSEPH J. KOHN, PH.D. 50 Eminent Mathematician A native of Czechoslovakia, Dr. Kohn s family emigrated to Ecuador
in 1939 and to the U.S. in 1945 where he received his Ph.D. from
Princeton in 1956. He is the Professor of Mathematics at Princeton.
He was awarded the Steele Prize of the American Mathematical
Society, the Bolazano Prize of the Union of Czechoslovak
Mathematicians and Physicists, and an honorary doctorate from the
University of Bologna. He was elected to the American Academy of
Sciences and to the US. National Academy of Sciences.
ARNO PENZIAS, PH.D. 51 Nobel Laureate Winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1978 for his contributions to
Astrophysics, Dr. Penzias worked at Bell Labs for most of his career,
first as a research scientist and later as the head of its research
organization. An author, R&D leader, and inventor, he later moved to
Silicon Valley, where he helped aspiring scientists and engineers to
create a number of successful high-technology companies.
CHARLES WANG, 62 Technology Pioneer A native of Shanghai, China, Mr. Wang foirnded Compnter Associates
International in 1976, building it to a multi-billion dollar company on
the principle that technology must serve business. His belief that
computer technology can improve children's lives led him to found The
Smile Train, an organization committed to eradicating the problem of
cleft lips and palates. Mr. Wang endowed the Asian American Center
at Stony brook and actively supports the National Center for Missing
and Exploited Children whose national headquarters bears his name.
A lifelong sports fan, he owns the NHL s N.Y Islanders.
JOSH S. WESTON, 46 Business Leader & Philanthropist A Fulbright Scholar after graduating Magna Gum Laude from City
College, Mr. Weston retired as Chairman after building Automatic
Data Processing into a $6 billion, 35,000 employee company. He
served on the Boards of many colleges, corporations, and other
institutions including Boys Town of Jerusalem,. Liberty Science
Center ~NJ), International Rescue Committee, NJ Symphony
Orchestra, United Nations Association, and Channel Thirteen. He
served in the Navy and holds four honorary doctorates.
