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October
14 , 2004 Print
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Ray Ricci Receives University’s Distinguished Lasallian
Educator Award
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After
recently receiving La Salle University’s Distinguished
Lasallian Educator Award in front of a large audience, Ray
Ricci would have preferred to slip back quietly into his
largely behind-the-scenes role of attracting students to
La Salle as the school’s Vice President for Enrollment
Services.
“I’m
embarrassed by all the attention,” he said. “I’m
very honored by the award. The other recipients of recent
years are a wonderful group of people to be listed with.”
When
presenting the award to Ricci,
La Salle professor Brother Gerry Molyneaux said, “In
the classroom and the office, as staff member, teacher,
and administrator, he has cultivated a spiritual climate
that touches minds and hearts.”
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When
presenting the award to Ricci, La Salle professor Brother Gerry
Molyneaux said, “In the classroom and the office, as staff
member, teacher, and administrator, he has cultivated a spiritual
climate that touches minds and hearts.”
Ricci
has worn several hats during his 30-year career at the University
-- academic counselor for the evening student division, Director
of University Planning, Registrar, and since 1990, Vice President
for Enrollment Services.
Since
then, he has worked to foster learning and service among students,
especially those who face social, economic, and personal challenges.
He was a key supporter of the Bilingual Undergraduate Studies for
Collegiate Advancement (BUSCA) Program, which enables Spanish-language
dominant students to begin a college education in their first language
while learning English. He has also worked to allow many BUSCA students
to complete the program tuition free.
“I
run a division that is charged with the responsibility of attracting
students to La Salle,” said Ricci. “We have to create
a world where people feel connected. This means building trust among
members of the Enrollment Services Division. It means being a Lasallian,
having people who understand that and feel connected and take steps
necessary to provide for our students.”
Ricci
feels that his personal view of the world and the values of the
Christian Brothers, who founded La Salle, are a good fit. “We
have to not only take responsibility for ourselves but for others
as well,” Ricci said. “I worship at a Sacred Heart Church
in Camden, the poorest city in the country. It’s a personal
choice I make to be part of that community. I’ve never really
thought about it any other way.”
In
the recent years, the Distinguished Lasallian Educator Award has
been given to Brother Emery Mollenhauer, former provost of the University
and one-time director of the University’s evening division;
Brother Daniel Burke, former president of La Salle and the founder
and director of the University’s art museum, and Anna Allen,
associate dean for the Division of Student Affairs.
Ricci
says he’s grateful to Brother Emery for showing him “the
joy and quiet satisfaction that one can glean from contributing
to the greater good, to the larger purpose. He had the ability to
frame the question, and, directly or indirectly, the question was
always about making La Salle a better place,” said Ricci.
“Then he invited you in to the conversation. In a very real
sense, that is what La Salle University does at its best, it invites
you into make connections, to build trust, to create a special kind
of social intimacy. When those three elements are present, life
is so much easier and more interesting. And, work becomes a vocation.”
-- Lauren Fritsky
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