One of the most successful women in the Washington, D.C., business community, Jean Edelman co-founded Edelman Financial Engines with her husband Ric ’80.

In October 2016, Jean and Ric made history when they announced a $25 million gift to transform the Rowan University Fossil Park into a world-class destination for scientific discovery. Their landmark gift is the largest ever to the University from alumni and the second largest gift in the institution’s history.

Strong supporters of STEM education, Jean and Ric have also provided generous support for the Edelman Planetarium to increase opportunities for science education and outreach in the region.

Jean earned her bachelor’s degree from Rowan in 1981 and currently serves as a member of Rowan’s Board of Trustees. She was the institution’s first female Student Government Association president and graduated as the Distinguished Senior—the University’s highest student honor, awarded to only one graduate annually.

Her insights are found in her book, The Other Side of Money, which helps readers see themselves and the world around them in a positive, loving way, as well as monthly newsletter articles, YouTube videos and the new children’s money book, The Squirrel Manifesto, co-written with Ric.

In 2018, Jean was named by South Jersey Biz as one of the “Women to Watch. In 2013, she was the speaker for the University’s graduate school Commencement ceremony. In 1994, Jean and Ric received the Rowan Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumni Award, which recognizes graduates who have brought credit to the institution through personal and professional accomplishments and humanitarianism.

President of Rohrer & Sayers Real Estate, Linda Rohrer has over 30 years of experience and expertise in the selling, buying, leasing and managing of commercial and residential real estate in Southern New Jersey.

Linda serves a trustee of the William G. Rohrer Charitable Foundation, which focuses on carrying on her father’s legacy and making an impact on South Jersey, particularly with regard to health and education.

An avid supporter of education at all levels, Linda has been a member of the Rowan University Board of Trustees since 2009 and served as Board Chair from 2012 to 2017.

Linda is a loyal Rowan University donor through the William G. Rohrer Charitable Foundation. The Rohrer College of Business was named after her late father, William G. Rohrer, with a $10 million pledge in 2005. In addition, the Foundation has given generously to endow a professorial chair at the College of Business, to establish the Rohrer Scholar program at the College and, most recently, to provide scholarships to attract honors students to the College.

In October 2014, she gave $1 million through the William G. Rohrer Foundation to establish an Endowed Chair at Rowan School of Osteopathic Medicine (SOM) to support research and teaching in geriatrics. This endowment brings the Rohrer Foundation’s contribution to the School of Osteopathic Medicine to $2 million.

Linda is vice chair of the Camden County Improvement Authority, a member of the Haddon Township Planning Board, and chair of 1st Colonial National Bank of Collingswood. She received her B.A. degree from Upsala College.

Lawrence Salva recently retired as Executive Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer of Comcast Corporation. He is a CPA in Pennsylvania and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants and Financial Executives International.

Prior to joining Comcast in 2000, he was a partner with PricewaterhouseCoopers and also served as a Professional Accounting Fellow with the US. Securities & Exchange Commission’s Office of the Chief Accountant.

A generous longtime Rowan supporter, Larry and his wife, Rita, pledged $1 million in 2012 to establish the Lawrence & Rita Salva Medical Scholars Fund, an endowment to benefit students at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University. In 2015 they made an additional pledge to establish the Student Loan Cancellation/Repayment Assistance Program and continue to provide scholarship support for medical students.

In 2000, Larry established the Salva Family Scholarship Fund to provide financial assistance through the Salva Family WGLS-FM Scholarship and the Salva Family Radio/TV/Film Scholarship.

Larry received a B.A. degree in Accounting/Administrative Studies from the University in 1977. He was the business manager for WGLS-FM, the campus radio station, was treasurer of the Student Government Association and belonged to the Student Financial Control Board. In 2005, he was inducted into the inaugural class of the WGLS-FM Hall of Fame.

Larry served on the Rowan University Foundation from 2000 until 2013 when he was installed on the Rowan University Board of Trustees.

The Salvas received Honorary Doctor of Humanities degrees during the University’s 2013 Commencement ceremony.

Virginia (Ginny) Smith is chairman of Inductotherm Corporation and group vice president of the Inductotherm Group, both headquartered in Rancocas, New Jersey. She is on the Board of Directors of Indel and is a principal and director of Rowan Technologies, Inc. Inductotherm Corp., founded by her father in 1953, is a world leader in manufacturing induction metal melting systems.

Ginny joined the company as a manager of advertising and communications in 1984. In early 1990, she was appointed director of advertising and, later, vice president-corporate communications for Indel, Inc. In 2002, she became group vice president for the Inductotherm Group and a member of the management advisory board.

Ginny has distinguished herself as a strong advocate and supporter of Rowan University. She has served on the University’s Board of Trustees for many years, including her most recent appointment in 2012.

Through the Henry M. Rowan Family Foundation, Ginny and her family are continuing the generous legacy of support created by her parents’ transformational $100 million commitment in 1992.

The largest gift to a state institution at that time, their historic generosity set a national standard for higher education philanthropy and established a foundation of excellence for the University and region.

The Rowan family’s pioneering philanthropy, through their family foundation as well as their corporate and personal contributions, has provided the University with financial stability and enabled it to establish world-class programs and open its doors to additional deserving students.

Ginny’s generous support has helped the arts to flourish at Rowan University through the creation of the Marie F. Rader Memorial Fund, which she established in 2008 to revitalize performing arts education and outreach at the University.

By any measure, Rowan University is one of the fastest-growing institutions in the nation. Enrollment continues to grow, the University has recently earned R2 research status, and we have been able to increase the quantity and quality of our academic offerings and services while continuing to keep the cost of an education relatively affordable.

With an unwavering focus on inspiring, challenging and supporting students, Rowan University has made exceptional progress. With the help of those who share our belief in creating more opportunities and advantages—by investing in what is important to you—together we will ensure that Rowan remains a bold leader in providing access to affordable, exemplary public higher education.

I invite you to partner with us as we build on our momentum and continue rising to even greater heights of excellence.

Dr. Paola Leone is leading research in one of the most complex medical fields of our time—the human brain.

As a Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine professor and director of the Cell & Gene Therapy Center, Leone studies pathophysiologic mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative diseases while training future generations of doctors, researchers and scientists.

Inheriting her father’s work ethic, Leone knew at a young age what she wanted to do and took it upon herself to accomplish it, going against her family’s initial wishes for her future. She embraced her own independence and leadership and recalls being a very intense and curious child.

“I was always exceptionally interested in unanswered questions—from medicine to biology to astronomy,” said Leone. “My interest in the neurosciences came early on in high school when I realized it was the most challenging field in medicine in terms of therapies.”

“We still don’t know much about how thoughts are formed or what really drives our passion as humans. There are so many unanswered questions about the brain and how it translates into who we are. That’s what I knew I wanted to find out.”

After earning her Ph.D. in neuroscience from the University of Padua in Italy, Leone began her career in academia studying drug addiction and gene therapy for Parkinson’s disease. She has researched all over the world, including Italy, Canada, and New Zealand. After spending time teaching at Thomas Jefferson University, she joined the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) as a faculty member and transitioned with the beginnings of RowanSOM, spending the last 18 years focusing on neurodegenerative diseases—developing treatments and meticulously working to slow down, stop and ultimately cure tragic disabilities to the brain. Leone specifically focuses on Canavan disease, but is also researching traumatic brain injury as well as Alzheimer’s disease.

Canavan disease is a fatal, neurological disorder that begins in infancy. Leone remembers the moment she chose to make the disease her point of study.

“Over 20 years ago when I was a researcher at Yale, a family came in with their sick child,” she said. “The doctors diagnosed her with Canavan disease and it was so, so rare. I knew then that it would be my primary focus. Her father was an MD who understood that research and funds would be necessary to fight it, and it soon became a passion project to me.”

Because Canavan disease is so rare, Leone knows almost every patient that is diagnosed. “We’ve learned everything there is to learn about the disease,” she said. “Clinical trials, historical national data—we know it all. We work to improve clinical end points with collaborators. We’ve designed a novel gene therapy that has been successful in support of those with this disease. We’ve worked very hard.”

Although Leone has made monumental progress over the past two-decades, she notes that making a clinical trial happen is no easy feat. She works long days, usually seven days a week-on life saving programs for children that need to be tested first. That comes with many challenges, including acquiring FDA support, pre-clinical status for neurodegenerative disease, finalizing administrative and legal details and pushing through huge delays, sometimes waiting as long as six months to have her proposals reviewed.

“The process and nature of my work in combination with the transition from UMDNJ to RowanSOM was hard,” added Leone. “But I knew this was the area where I wanted to stay and continue my research and teaching. The beginning wasn’t easy, but eventually things fell into place and we were able to be very active in and out of the lab.”

While her work on neurodegenerative diseases has been rapidly rising during her time at RowanSOM, Leone notes that the opportunity Rowan has given her to teach and build relationships with her students has been “serendipitous.”

“I enjoy teaching very much,” Leone said. “This is very demanding work and my students are incredibly motivated. I’ve had close to 50 students every year for 10 years and I love writing each and every one of them a letter of recommendation.”

Leone credits the environment at Rowan for her success not only as a researcher but as a professor and mentor to her students.

“There are many aspects in my line of work in which supportive leadership and a supportive environment are necessary,” said Leone. “It’s important to have time to devote to my students and build relationships so that I can help them as much as I can. And without that environment I wouldn’t be able to spend time on my own academic research goals to develop treatments for these awful, incurable diseases.”

Chrissy Buteas ’04 had ambitions to join the FBI, but thanks to a professor at Rowan University the trajectory of her career changed. A Middlesex County native, Buteas always had a desire to work in a government-related field. She spent time wanting to be a police officer before exploring enforcement on the federal level, knowing her athletic ability would be a valuable asset. However, after Professor Caswell urged Buteas to complete an internship in a government office, her experience working with Senator Jon Corzine inspired her to impact the community through a very different scope. Buteas is currently the Chief Government Affairs Officer for the New Jersey Business and Industry Association (NJBIA). Formerly the President and CEO of the New Jersey Homecare & Hospice Association, Buteas is rising as an advocate for the people of New Jersey, maintaining just policies and allocating resources for NJBIA companies and their employees. “My work today is really advocating before our state and federal government on policies that will impact the business community,” said Buteas. “And I can say, I’m so thankful that my professors and coaches at Rowan really invested in my success and opened my eyes to my own potential.” Buteas first decided on Rowan because of the diversity in majors as well as their reputable field hockey program. Having an athletic background played a critical role in pushing Buteas out of her comfort zone.

“I was looking for a balance in my major, law and justice, and playing field hockey,” said Buteas. “Rowan was the best option all around. I married my major and my sport. Field hockey prepared me for anything I wanted to do in life. It’s very similar to what I do everyday—putting myself out there. I may win. I may lose. But you learn how to work with a team and you learn how to get back up after you fail.”

Looking back and remembering being challenged in the classroom and on the playing field, Buteas’s piece of advice to all working women is to take big risks.

“You have to take risks,” she urged. “That’s my biggest takeaway from my undergraduate experience and my career thus far. So many people don’t take risks and there’s a true fear there, which is why having mentors is so important. I’ve always gone into different things that I might not have been one hundred percent prepared for. Whether that was taking on the role of CEO at a young age or running for public office—I had a lot of help in overcoming that initial fear.”

Buteas recieved her Master of Public Administration from Rutgers University, determined to further her education to gain valuable leadership skills. She was previously a councilwoman for South Plainfield, New Jersey, having “thrown her hat into the ring,” believing women can lend something meaningful to political dialogue.

She also lends her voice to the Rowan University Alumni Board of Directors.

“I’m honored to be a member of the Board,” she said. “I love being part of the efforts to improve connections between the campus and the alumni. I do as much as I can, but I always want to do more.”

Buteas is involved with Rowan’s Institute for Public Policy & Citizenship, having scheduled panelists to talk to students about government. She is also instrumental in planning alumni events in Trenton, New Jersey.

“I am most proud when I am able to take what my own mentors have given me and give that to someone else,” said Buteas. “If I can smooth someone’s path, make it a bit easier, and help them to take those risks—that’s what excites me the most.”

“I want to continue leading,” she concluded. “It’s important that young people, especially students, are pushed in the same way I was—to be a leader in whatever they decide to do.”

Jennifer Webb-McRae ’91 grew up in Vineland, New Jersey and chose to follow in her parents’ footsteps by enrolling at Glassboro State College and was a member of the very last class to graduate with Glassboro State on her diploma.

“I remember I started a semester late, but I was still able to graduate with my class,” Webb-McRae said. “I was very proud of that. I loved being on campus so much that I never went home.”

Currently, Prosecutor Webb-McRae is the chief law enforcement officer for Cumberland County. She oversees all law enforcement agencies and internal affairs, implements attorney general guidelines and strives to meet the needs of her constituents.

Webb-McRae knew she wanted to be a lawyer when she was just six years old. Her family reminds her that she would argue every point and debate every decision, always trying to negotiate and leverage her position.

“That’s how it started,” she added. “I was really lucky—there was never anything else I wanted to do. I knew I wanted to be a criminal justice major at Glassboro and my goal was to get good grades to go to law school.”

And that she did.

Webb-McRae always wanted to do something that helped her community. Her time at Glassboro gave her the competitive edge she needed to be successful at Rutgers School of Law in Camden, NJ.

“I expected to do well, and I was prepared for my post graduate experience,” said Webb-McRae. “The environment at GSC was conducive to asking questions and exploring opinions. I remember having classes that challenged paradigms and gave us the freedom to have a dialogue and ask, ‘Why is this the way it is? And can it be changed?’”

Webb-McRae also went on to graduate from the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers College in Macon, Georgia and is admitted to the bars of the State of New Jersey, United States District Court and the State of Pennsylvania. She spent six years as an Assistant Deputy Public Defender for the State of New Jersey and eventually ventured into private practice. In January 2010, Webb-McRae was nominated by Governor Jon S. Corzine to be the first African American and first female Prosecutor of Cumberland County.

“I’m very proud to hold such a milestone in the county,” said Webb-McRae. “I’m forever grateful because it really gave me the opportunity to put my stamp on justice.”

“What I love about my job is that we aren’t simply focusing on prosecuting crimes,” she added. “We heavily focus on ways to work collaboratively with other systems so we can help people make better choices and divert them from the criminal justice system.”

Recently, Webb-McRae has under lined the need to “stop kicking the can of mental health to the criminal justice system.” She believes it is vital for all public service agencies to work together across all platforms to assist their communities in getting the help they need.

“We must figure out ways to aid and empower so no one continues to get knocked down,” she said. “We do a lot of work in the juvenile justice field as well, building as many collaborative relationships as we can to steer constituents toward the right path.”

While Webb-McRae’s collaborative approach to unifying systems has remained at the forefront of her term as Prosecutor, she stresses that it isn’t always easy and it’s important to push through when things become challenging.

“It’s very hard to change systems—it takes a faithfulness to do it everyday,” she said. “My undergraduate experience really gave me that fortitude—my friends, my professors, my mentors—to overcome anything thrown my way and give each day my all.”

Webb-McRae will continue changing the stigma attached to the criminal justice system by utilizing county resources to their optimum potential to take those who are struggling and pick them up, not tear them down.

“Justice is a verb, not a noun. We should be doing justice,” she concluded. “We need to be out there making it happen.”