Contact: Kathy Weatherall, 201-217-3131

JERSEY CITY, New Jersey, Oct. 11 /Christian Newswire/ -- Announcement of inauguration of Dr. Eugene Cornacchia as president of Saint Peter's College.

WHEN: OCTOBER 20
11:30 a.m.: Inaugural Mass, St. Aedan's Church, 800 Bergen Avenue
2:30 p.m.: Inaugural Procession and Installation Ceremony
The Victor R. Yanitelli, S.J., Recreational Life Center
(Please call to arrange media parking at Montgomery Street lot between Kennedy Blvd and West Side Avenue)

WHO: President Dr. Eugene J. Cornacchia, representatives from approximately 100 Colleges, Universities and Educational Organizations, Board of Trustees, Board of Regents, Alumni Board, faculty, administration, staff, students, Newark Archbishop John J. Myers to celebrate Inaugural Liturgy. Over 400 guests, including area dignitaries, are expected to attend the opening.

BACKGROUND:
St. Peter's College, the Jesuit College of New Jersey, will inaugurate its first non-Jesuit President, Dr. Eugene Cornacchia, as the college's 22nd President on October 20, 2007.

Dr. Eugene J. Cornacchia has worked for more than a quarter century to shape and strengthen Saint Peter's College as a leading Jesuit institution known for academic excellence and innovation.

When he was appointed in May 2007 as the first lay president in the College's 135-year history (following the untimely death of Fr. James N. Loughran, S.J.) Dr. Cornacchia noted he was "a product of Jesuit education" and stressed his presidency will be "always, always committed" to the Jesuit mission at Saint Peter's.

During his past 26 years at the College, Dr. Cornacchia has won a reputation among students, faculty and professional staff as a dedicated, accessible and effective leader.

As the College's Academic Dean and then as Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. Cornacchia worked collaboratively with very talented individuals to lead initiatives that increased enrollment while significantly raising academic standards and implemented more than $10 million in capital projects.

Dr. Cornacchia, 53, received a bachelor's degree in political science in 1976 and a master's degree in political science in 1979 from Fordham University. He also earned his Ph.D. in political science (with a focus on Urban, Ethnic and Electoral Politics) from Fordham University in 1985.

Dr. Cornacchia and his wife, AnnMarie, recently relocated from Westchester County to Guarini House, a residence on the college's Jersey City campus. They have two daughters, Lauren, an accountant, and Katherine, a sophomore at the College of Mount Saint Vincent.

ABOUT SAINT PETER'S COLLEGE
Saint Peter's College is one of twenty-eight Jesuit colleges and universities in the United States and the only one in New Jersey.

Saint Peter's College, founded in 1872, is a Jesuit, Catholic, co-educational, liberal arts college in an urban setting which seeks to develop the whole person in preparation for a lifetime of learning, leadership and service in a diverse and global society. Committed to academic excellence and individual attention, Saint Peter's College provides education, informed by values, primarily in degree-granting programs in the arts, sciences, and business, to resident and commuting students from a variety of backgrounds.

The College has an enrollment of approximately 3,000 full-time and part-time students representing a remarkably diverse student body that originates from throughout the United States and from more than 60 countries around the world.

The College offers 38 Bachelor's programs along with numerous Associate degree programs. The College of Arts and Sciences / School of Business Administration (CAS/SBA) offers undergraduate programs for traditional day students while the School of Professional and Continuing Studies (SPCS) offers undergraduate programs for adult students. The College also has an Honors program, individualized majors and opportunities to earn credits for internships, service learning and other off-campus experiences.

The School of Graduate Studies offers Master's Degree programs in Education, Business Administration, Accountancy and Nursing.

Saint Peter's College has an 18-acre main campus in Jersey City, a branch campus for adult learning in Englewood Cliffs, and several off-site locations.

For more information, visit www.spc.edu.