Eugene Cornacchia
Retiring president
Saint Peter’s University
It’s easy to remember Eugene Cornacchia for the sense of pride and passion he showed during Saint Peter’s remarkable two-week run to the Elite Eight of the 2022 NCAA Tournament. That jubilance is how so many people feel about Cornacchia’s more than four decades of service at the Jersey City school, the last 17 years spent as its president.
Here are just some of achievements of Cornacchia, who will retire at the end of June:
• Initiation of the institution’s first doctoral programs and establishment of three of the four schools at the university, including the Frank J. Guarini School of Business, a School of Nursing and the Caulfield School of Education;
• Achievement of university status;
• Transformation of the university’s physical campus, including the Mac Mahon Student Center; a new six-story residence hall; the creation of the Run Baby Run Arena; the addition of the Digital Research Commons in the Theresa and Edward O’Toole Library; and the creation of the STEM Empowerment Center; among many other projects.
All of this was made possible by Cornacchia’s efforts in fundraising — where he used his passion for the school to lead two major campaigns, raising $65 million in 2014 and nearly $75 million in the most recent campaign.
Few leaders in higher ed in the history of New Jersey have had as much impact at their school as Cornacchia.
