List of Rider University people

This is a list of notable graduates of Rider University (formerly Rider College) in Lawrenceville, New Jersey.

Notable alumni

Business

• Carol Meyrowitz, CEO of TJX Companies
• Robert Miller, Canadian billionaire who founded Future Electronics ^[1]
• Bernard V. Vonderschmitt, founder/CEO of Xilinx.
• Kenneth Yen, CEO of China Motor Corporation and Yulon

Government

• Antonio Arocho, attorney and former chief operating officer of the Hispanic National Bar Association
• Milton Nathaniel Barnes, Liberian Ambassador to the United Nations
• Jack Casey, member of the New Jersey Senate and General Assembly
• Robert D. Clifton, member of the New Jersey General Assembly
• John F. Cordisco, former member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
• Frederick W. Donnelly, former Mayor of Trenton, New Jersey
• Eldridge Hawkins, Jr., Mayor of Orange, New Jersey
• Valerie Huttle, Democrat who serves in the New Jersey General Assembly where she represents the 37th Legislative District
• Robert E. Grossman, Judge on the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of New York ^[2]
• Vincent Ignizio, member of New York City Council; former member of New York State Assembly
• Peter Inverso, former member of the New Jersey State Senate
• Marvin Keller, Pennsylvania State Representative and Senator
• Edward von Kloberg III, infamous lobbyist
• Paul Kramer, member of the New Jersey General Assembly
• James J. McCullough, former member of the New Jersey State Senate
• Connie Myers, MA, former member of the New Jersey General Assembly
• Joseph A. Palaia, Monmouth County Freeholder, former member of the New Jersey General Assembly and New Jersey State Senate
• Michael T. Peifer, member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
• David Rousseau, MBA, former New Jersey State Treasurer during Jon Corzine Administration ^[3]
• Mark S. Schweiker, MA, 44th Governor of Pennsylvania. ^[4]
• Shirley Turner, MA, member & president pro tempore of the New Jersey State Senate

Sports

Baseball

• Jack Armstrong, former Major League Baseball pitcher; 1990 MLB All-Star and World Champion
• Kevin Barry, former Major League Baseball pitcher
• Al Downing, former Major League Baseball pitcher; 1967 MLB All-Star & Strikeout Champion; 1971 MLB Comeback Player of the Year
• Jim Hoey, former Major League Baseball relief pitcher
• Jeff Kunkel, former Major League Baseball player; 3rd pick of the 1983 MLB Draft by the Texas Rangers
• Nick Margevicius, Major League Baseball pitcher for the Seattle Mariners
• Danny Napoleon, former Major League Baseball outfielder

Basketball

• Dick Kuchen, former head basketball coach at Yale University and the University of California
• Digger Phelps, former Notre Dame Fighting Irish basketball coach; ESPN analyst
• Jason Thompson, former National Basketball Association power forward/center; 12th pick in the 2008 NBA draft; current player with Fenerbahçe

Soccer

• Jim McKeown, retired American soccer defender who played in the North American Soccer League.
• Bobby Smith, National Soccer Hall of Fame member; former NASL and U.S. National defender
• Florian Valot, current midfielder for New York Red Bulls
• Jose Aguinaga, current midfielder for El Paso Locomotive

Other sports

• Nick Catone, Male Athlete of the Year (2004); retired professional MMA fighter formerly competing in the UFC's Middleweight Division ^[5]
• Jazmine Fenlator, Female Athlete of the Year (2006 and 2007); U.S. Olympic bobsled pilot at 2014 Winter Olympics at Sochi, now competes for her father's Jamaica National Team
• Caroline Lind, MBA, Olympic Gold Medal rower at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing
• Carmelo Marrero, wrestler; professional mixed martial arts fighter ^[6]

Media & Entertainment

• David Bird, financial journalist
• John Bundy, magician with two appearances on the Late Show with David Letterman
• Matt Cook (born 1984, class of 2002), actor known mostly for his roles as Mo McCracken on the TBS sitcom Clipped and most recently as Lowell in the CBS sitcom Man with a Plan .
• William Mastrosimone, playwright
• James Morgart, horror film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and critic
• Roberta Naas, journalist
• Joanne Nosuchinsky, actress (summa cum laude ^[7] ) - The Awesome 80s Prom (Off Broadway), Miss New York USA 2013, Fox News Channel contributor, former occasional fill-in host for the network's overnight Red eye program and contributor to Sunday night's, The Greg Gutfeld Show, on Fox
• Tom Papa, comedian and host of NBC's The Marriage Ref
• Barbara Park, author of children's books
• Gerald Peary, American film critic, who has been a reviewer and columnist for the Boston Phoenix since 1996. Former Acting Curator of the Harvard Film Archive

Other

• Arthur Katalayi, MA, senior adviser and global ambassador at Giving Back to Africa

Notable faculty

• Sally Brophy (1928–2007), television actor of the 1950s and 1960s, instructed theater arts at Rider for two decades. She was a graduate of the Royal Academy in London, England.
• Jack Sullivan, American literary scholar, essayist, author, editor, musicologist, and short story writer.

References

1. "Forbes List Directory". Archived from the original on 15 March 2009.
2. Duane Morris Partner Appointed U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge for the Eastern District of New York
3. "Rider Hosts N.J. Treasurer, M.B.A. Alumnus David Rousseau". Archived from the original on 27 May 2010. Retrieved 20 June 2010.
4. Grybowski, Adam (1 August 2018). "Pennsylvania's 44th governor to share unique, proven experience with University's Homeland Security program". Rider.edu. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
5. "Nick Catone UFC Bio" . Retrieved 1 January 2014.
6. "Carmelo Marrero MMA Bio" . Retrieved 1 January 2014.
7. Joanne Nosuchinsky: 5 things you didn't know...