SterlingRisk Insurance, one of the nation’s top independently owned insurance brokerages, announced the promotion of Robert F. Larocca, ’90, to chief strategic relations officer. Larocca began his career at SterlingRisk in 1999 and will still retain his title as executive vice president. Prior to joining SterlingRisk, Larocca held the position of Long Island branch manager for American International Group (AIG) after serving as assistant vice president at Johnson & Higgins.
Accomplished School Counselor Hired as Assistant Superintendent
The Glenn Cove City School District announced the appointment of Dr. Kim H. Rodriguez, ’86, ’89, as the district’s new superintendent for human resources. Dr. Rodriguez brings over 30 years of experience in public education, and she was recently awarded the Career Achievement Award from the New York School Counselors Association. Her impressive resume also includes service as an assistant professor of education at LIU for more than six years.
Long Island University Announces The Roosevelt School
School to Focus on Studies in International Relations, Diplomacy, Leadership and Service
Brookville, NY, February 18, 2021 – Long Island University, a nationally ranked university, announced today the formation of The Roosevelt School, enrolling students beginning fall 2021.
The Roosevelt School will prepare students for careers in international relations, diplomacy, leadership, service, and policy-making at multinational corporations, foundations, think-tanks, non-profit organizations and governmental agencies around the globe. The school is named after the Roosevelt family and inspired by the legacies in diplomacy, conservation and social justice of the 26th President of the U.S., Theodore Roosevelt; the 32nd President of the U.S., Franklin Delano Roosevelt; and Former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.
“Long Island University is proud to further build upon the exceptional heritage of the Roosevelts,” said Long Island University President Kimberly R. Cline. “The Roosevelt School will prepare students to achieve success in a global society by guiding them to become well-informed, critically-minded and engaged citizens.”
The Roosevelt School offers an undergraduate degree in International Relations & Diplomacy and a 5-year BA and MBA in International Relations & Diplomacy/Masters of Business Administration. Coursework will be enhanced by internships at renowned institutions, including the United Nations, Red Cross and federal and state governmental agencies. To further student understanding of world politics, global environmental issues and international business planning, students will have the option to study abroad at Long Island University’s Global College centers. Theodore Roosevelt’s great-grandson Tweed Roosevelt, chairman of the Theodore Roosevelt Institute and professor at Long Island University, will serve as chairman of The Roosevelt School.
“On behalf of the entire Roosevelt family, we are proud that Long Island University will honor the legacy of our family through the formation of The Roosevelt School,” stated Tweed Roosevelt. “This exciting academic venture will prepare graduates to carry forth the highest standards of professionalism, diplomacy and integrity represented by the extraordinary and unparalleled reputations of Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt.”
Tweed Roosevelt led the effort to award President Theodore Roosevelt the Congressional Medal of Honor, the United States’ highest military honor. President Bill Clinton formally awarded the Medal posthumously in 2001. The award is prominently displayed in the White House’s Roosevelt Room, adjacent to the Oval Office. Professor Roosevelt has taught at Harvard University and Columbia University’s School of Business. He holds an AB from Harvard College, an MBA from Columbia University and Doctorate of Humane Letters from Misericordia University.
Professor Roosevelt is also a founder and president of the Society of Presidential Descendants. The Society consists of a group of Americans with direct lineage to one or more of the 46 United States presidents. The mission of the organization is to promote educational opportunities about the presidency, award prizes recognizing books published about the presidency and provide presidential descendants with the opportunity to share a comradery amongst each other. Other founders of the Society include Massee McKinley, who serves as vice president and chief of staff, as well as Lynda Johnson Robb and Clifton Truman Daniel, both serving as vice presidents.
The Roosevelt School Houses the Theodore Roosevelt Institute, Global Service Institute & Steven S. Hornstein Center for Policy, Polling, and Analysis
The Roosevelt School houses the Theodore Roosevelt Institute, which serves as a home for research, public seminars, workshops, educational programs and conferences about Roosevelt, his times and contemporaries. Upcoming events include the following virtual lectures: ‘TR’s Fascinating Relatives: Saints and Sinners’ scheduled for February 23 at 12 p.m.; ‘TR: The Conservationist’ on March 23 at 12 p.m.; and ‘TR: The Making of a Leader’ on April 20 at 12 p.m. The virtual lectures are part of a series called “Tales of Theodore Roosevelt” presented via Zoom by Professor Tweed Roosevelt. Additionally, the Theodore Roosevelt Public Speaking Contest in conjunction with the Theodore Roosevelt Association offers high school juniors and seniors an opportunity to win monetary rewards and scholarships to Long Island University. The national contest challenges high school students to develop and present original speeches on President Theodore Roosevelt’s life and legacy.
The School is also home to the Global Service Institute, which provides innovative educational initiatives to inspire volunteerism and prepare students for personal or professional lives dedicated to service. The Institute offers a Global Service app that connects volunteers with nonprofit organizations, and community groups. Chaired by Rita Cosby, renowned Emmy-winning TV host, veteran correspondent and best-selling author, the Global Service Institute’s Honorary Advisory Board consists of esteemed and accomplished individuals from diverse fields – all of whom share a strong commitment to fostering service. Board members include but are not limited to Boxing Legend Evander Holyfield, Super Bowl Champ Joe Theismann, Grammy-Winning Singer Dionne Warwick, Roc Nation President of Business Operations & Strategy Brett Yormark, Astronaut Buzz Aldrin, NATO Supreme Allied Command General Wesley Clark, Business Executive and D-Day Veteran Maurice R. “Hank” Greenberg, America’s First Female Four-Star General Ann Dunwoody, Medal of Honor Recipient Colonel Jack Jacobs, President of the Reagan Legacy Foundation and Children’s Advocate Michael Reagan, President of First Responders Children’s Foundation and Actress Jillian Crane and others.
The Roosevelt School hosts the Steven S. Hornstein Center for Policy, Polling, and Analysis at Long Island University, which provides the Roosevelt School with independent polling, empirical research and analysis on a wide range of public issues. The Hornstein Center informs the public and policy makers about critical issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. Recent polls on issues such as the coronavirus vaccine, presidential election and Supreme Court nomination have earned national media coverage in the Associated Press, Dow Jones, Business Insider and more.
LIU Board of Trustees Chairman Eric Krasnoff added, “We are proud to offer such a vibrant curriculum, designed for today’s interdependent world, which will equip students with the ability to think and act globally. The Roosevelt School exemplifies Long Island University’s position as a nationally recognized research and teaching institution.”
The Roosevelts and LIU: A Historical, Illustrious Connection
Since the turn of the century, Long Island University has been directly linked with the Roosevelt families. From 1901 to 1910, President Theodore Roosevelt worked with breakfast cereal entrepreneur C.W. Post (the namesake of LIU’s Post campus) on the establishment of labor relations policies in the United States. President Theodore Roosevelt, while living at Sagamore Hill in Oyster Bay, was a member of the Meadowbrook Hunt Club and an invited guest rider for steeplechasing and fox hunts on the land that encompasses the Post campus. In 1926, war hero and U.S. Secretary to the Navy, Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., was among a group of citizens to write Long Island University’s charter, resulting in the first privately endowed university to serve the men and women of Long Island.
During the 1940s, Joseph E. Davies, who resided on what is the now the LIU Post campus, served as FDR’s United States’ Ambassador to Russia. Decorated U.S. Navy veteran and Harvard graduate, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Jr., third son of FDR, was elected to LIU’s Board of Trustees in 1946. Cereal heiress and philanthropist Marjorie Merriweather Post, whose estate is today the LIU Post campus, served with First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt on several World War II relief committees to fund a field hospital in France and Red Cross services, for which Mrs. Roosevelt presented Mrs. Post with the Cross of Honor at the White House. Finally, in 2018, LIU launched the Theodore Roosevelt Institute.
Visit The Roosevelt School website.
About Long Island University
Long Island University, founded in 1926, continues to redefine higher education, providing high quality academic instruction by world-class faculty. Recognized by Forbes for its emphasis on experiential learning and by the Brookings Institution for its “value added” to student outcomes, LIU offers over 250 degree programs, with a network of 270,000 alumni that includes industry leaders and entrepreneurs across the globe. Visit liu.edu for more information.
Exclusive Partnership Brings Vaccine POD to University
Nassau County Executive Laura Curran announced an exclusive partnership with Long Island University to launch a vaccine POD on campus that will help expand the county’s vaccination efforts. Located at the University Center in Bush Brown Hall, the vaccine POD will be managed by the Nassau County Department of Health and staffed by students and faculty of LIU’s nationally recognized School of Health Professions and Nursing who have been trained to administer the vaccine.
NHL Prospect Named to Prestigious Award Watch List
LIU men’s hockey senior goalkeeper Garrett Metcalf was named to the 2021 Mike Richter Award Watch List, the award given annually to the best goalkeeper in NCAA Division I hockey. Metcalf, who was drafted by the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks in 2015, joins a list of 35 goalkeepers from around the country competing for the award, and is the only athlete from an independent school to make the list. He has played in seven games for the Sharks, making 217 saves with a .919 save percentage.
Ambitious Entrepreneur Joins Nonprofit Hunger Relief Organization
Feeding Westchester, Westchester County’s largest nonprofit hunger-relief organization, announced the addition of Kecia Palmer-Cousins, ‘97, to its board of directors. Palmer-Cousins is a wellness entrepreneur, manufacturing engineer, and project management consultant who co-owns multiple companies including Aero-Ba-Soul, Inc., which provides technical assistance and one-on-one coaching to Minority Women Business Enterprises. She also serves in leadership positions in the Peekskill NAACP, City of Peekskill Youth Bureau, and Hudson Valley Gateway Chamber of Commerce.
Basketball Star Named to Home Town Hall of Fame
The Lee County (Florida) Athletic Conference inducted DeAngelique Waithe, ’18, into its 2021 Hall of Fame class. Waithe was a four-year letter winner for East Lee County High School where she led her team to a district runner-up. She was All-Area in 2014, capping off her 1,000-point career being named a finalist for Miss Basketball in Florida. At LIU, Waithe averaged 12.6 points and 8.7 rebounds per game in her senior season and went on to play professionally in Europe.
Expert Accountant Hired as Managing Director
Fiske & Company, one of South Florida’s oldest public accounting firms, announced the hiring of Staci Parrish, CPA, ’96, as managing director of tax and accounting. Parrish brings more than 30 years of experience in advising clients on a variety of taxation matters. Prior to joining Fiske & Company, Parrish worked for a number of national accounting firms, and she is an active member of several professional and volunteer organizations in her community.
Americans With Presidential Lineage Form ‘Society of Presidential Descendants’ to Create Educational Opportunities About U.S. Presidency
Tweed Roosevelt, Massee McKinley, Lynda Johnson Robb & Clifton Truman Daniel To Lead Initiative
A group of Americans with direct lineage to one or more of the 46 United States presidents announced today the formation of the Society of Presidential Descendants, which will reside at Long Island University. The organization will enable and support educational programs that focus on the history of the presidency and the importance of civic engagement in American democracy.
Educational initiatives will include the development of presidential curricula for schools, sponsorship of a biennial book award on presidential leadership, and presidential leadership conferences with presidential descendants as speakers. The Society will also sponsor a high school writing competition and work with museums around the country on presidential exhibits.
Tweed Roosevelt, the great-grandson of President Theodore Roosevelt, serves as president of the Society and has dedicated much of his professional life to upholding the legacy and preserving the history of his great-grandfather’s presidency. As a professor and chairman of the Theodore Roosevelt Institute at Long Island University, Tweed Roosevelt led the effort to form the society along with Massee McKinley, Lynda Johnson Robb and Clifton Truman Daniel, who serve as vice president and chief of staff, vice president and vice president, respectively. Society of Presidential Descendants members are direct descendants of a President of the United States.
“The Society of the Presidential Descendants was founded to promote the historical legacy of the presidency and those individuals that have held the highest elected office in our great country,” said Tweed Roosevelt, chairman of the Theodore Roosevelt Institute, university professor at LIU, and great-grandson of the former president. “Through family members with direct lineage to a U.S. President, the group seeks to bring further insight into the office of the presidency by offering educational events, programs, and seminars.”
“Led by Tweed Roosevelt, the Theodore Roosevelt Institute at Long Island University, serves as a home for research, public seminars, educational programs and conferences about Roosevelt, his times and contemporaries,” stated Long Island University President Kimberly R. Cline. “We are proud to further build on the study of presidential leadership by working closely with the Society of Presidential Descendants.”
Members of the Society of Presidential Descendants will participate in the Society’s inaugural presidential gathering in Long Island, New York, held June 10-12, 2022, with events planned at Long Island University and Theodore Roosevelt’s Sagamore Hill. The weekend will include a welcome dinner with fellow descendants, a public symposium with distinguished speakers, a private tour at Sagamore Hill, and a gala dinner where a prestigious honoree will be presented with the Society’s medal.
According to Massee McKinley, the great-great nephew of the 25th U.S. President William McKinley, and the great-great grandson of the 24th U.S. President Grover Cleveland, “The Society of Presidential Descendants holds tremendous promise in promoting the legacy of the United States presidency, its 46 unique leaders and the way these leaders are portrayed in studying their leadership styles. It is my sincere hope that the Society becomes the authority in educating America about each president, their leadership styles and how civics can play a vital role in this educational endeavor. I am encouraged about the future of America and its potential for leadership.”
Lynda Johnson Robb, the daughter of the 36th U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson and his First Lady Lady Bird Johnson, commented, “In this time of polarization, I hope that this Society can encourage the study of our country’s history and how its Presidents have influenced it. We look forward to having an impact on the dialogue of what unites us as a country.”
Clifton Truman Daniel, grandson of the 33rd U.S. President Harry S. Truman and First Lady Bess Truman, concluded, “I hope that we can, in some small way, help the nation toward, if not unity, at least collegial and constructive disagreement. In the ranks of presidential descendants, historic friendship endures while political rancor fades away.”
Visit the societyofpresidentialdescendants.org website.
About Long Island University
Long Island University, founded in 1926, continues to redefine higher education, providing high quality academic instruction by world-class faculty. Recognized by Forbes for its emphasis on experiential learning and by the Brookings Institution for its “value added” to student outcomes, LIU offers over 250 degree programs, with a network of 270,000 alumni that includes industry leaders and entrepreneurs across the globe. Visit liu.edu for more information.
54% of Americans Believe the Worst of the Pandemic is Not Over as Demand for Vaccines Increases, Long Island University Hornstein Center National Poll Finds
BROOKVILLE, NY, February 11, 2021 – Results of a newly released Long Island University Steven S. Hornstein Center for Policy, Polling and Analysis national poll reveal that many Americans believe the worst of the pandemic is not over as demand for vaccines increases. Americans over age 60 with this belief were as high as 65%.
PDF Format – Includes sample and methodology detail
15% OF AMERICANS SAY THEY RECEIVED THE CORONAVIRUS VACCINE
Americans were asked if they received a coronavirus vaccine. 15% of respondents said yes.
74% OF AMERICANS WANT THE CORONAVIRUS VACCINE (UP FROM 71% IN DECEMBER 2020)
Americans were asked if they would agree to be vaccinated if an FDA approved coronavirus vaccine was available right now. Of the respondents, 74% said yes, which is tracking significantly higher from 38% in October 2020 and slightly higher than 71% in December 2020 through national polls conducted by Long Island University Steven S. Hornstein Center for Policy, Polling & Analysis.
77% OF AMERICANS OVER AGE 60 WANT TO BE VACCINATED IMMEDIATELY OR WITHIN THE MONTH
Americans over age 60 are most interested in the immediate availability of the coronavirus vaccine. 77% of Americans over age 60 said they would get the vaccine within a month of availability. CDC data indicate over 44 million vaccine doses have been administered to date in the United States.
DO YOU BELIEVE THE WORST OF THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC IS OVER?
65% OF AMERICANS OVER AGE 60 SAY NO; 45% OF AMERICANS AGE 18 TO 29 SAY NO
Respondents were asked if they believed the worst of the pandemic was over. Overall, 54% of respondents said no. 65% of Americans over 60 years old said no. 56% of Americans aged 45-60 said no. 49% of Americans aged 30-44 said no. 45% of Americans age 18 to 29 said no. Older Americans were more concerned that the pandemic had not yet peaked than younger Americans.
78% OF AMERICANS REMAIN CONCERNED OVER RISK OF FAMILY CONTRACTING THE CORONAVIRUS
Americans were asked how concerned they were about someone in their family becoming seriously ill from the coronavirus. 78% of respondents said they are somewhat or seriously concerned. Respondents with the highest concern that they or someone in their family could become seriously ill from the coronavirus are Democrats (89%) followed by Independents/other (73%) and Republicans (68%). 80% of respondents over age 60 were also somewhat or very concerned over family risks from the coronavirus.
78% OF AMERICANS AGREE THAT WEARING MASKS IN PUBLIC REDUCES THE SPREAD OF CORONAVIRUS
While political differences remain in Americans’ belief that wearing a mask in public reduces the spread of the coronavirus, 78% of Americans agree that it does. When asked if wearing masks reduces the spread of coronavirus, 93% of Democrats said yes; 73% of Independents said yes; and 63% of Republicans said yes.
STATE VACCINATION PLANS AND CDC AUTHORIZED VACCINES
Each state health department has a tailored plan for vaccination rollout in the United States. Currently, the two vaccines that are authorized and recommended to prevent COVID-19 by the CDC are Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine and Moderna COVID-19 vaccine.
METHODOLOGY
This Long Island University Steven S. Hornstein Center for Policy, Polling, and Analysis online poll was conducted through SurveyMonkey from January 21 – 22, 2021 among a national sample of 1,622 adults ages 18 and up. Respondents for this survey were selected from over 2.5 million people who take surveys on the SurveyMonkey platform each day. Data for this week have been weighted for age and gender using the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey to reflect the demographic composition of the United States. The modeled error estimate for this survey is plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.
ABOUT THE LONG ISLAND UNIVERSITY STEVEN S. HORNSTEIN CENTER FOR POLICY, POLLING, AND ANALYSIS
The Long Island University Steven S. Hornstein Center for Policy, Polling, and Analysis conducts independent polling, empirical research, and analysis on a wide range of public issues. Our studies inform the public and policy makers about critical issues, attitudes, and trends shaping the world. Visit liu.edu/Hornstein for more information and results from this national poll.
ABOUT LONG ISLAND UNIVERSITY
Long Island University, founded in 1926, continues to redefine higher education, providing high quality academic instruction by world-class faculty. Recognized by Forbes for its emphasis on experiential learning and by the Brookings Institution for its “value added” to student outcomes, LIU offers over 250 degree programs, with a network of 270,000 alumni that includes industry leaders and entrepreneurs across the globe. Visit liu.edu for more information.