PBC Dinner Raises $1.2 Million

The President’s Business Council honored Dennis J. McGonigle ’82, CFO, SEI Investments, at the University’s16th Annual Award Dinner.
Dennis J. McGonigle ’82, chief financial officer and executive vice president at SEI Investments,The University of Scranton President’s Medal at the President’s Business Council’s 16th Annual Award Dinner at The Pierre in New York City. From left are: University of Scranton Interim President Rev. Herbert B. Keller, S.J., University of Scranton Interim President; McGonigle; and Patricia A. Byrnes Clarke ’86, P’17, ’19, chief talent officer, Havas, and chair of the PBC.
Dennis J. McGonigle ’82, chief financial officer and executive vice president at SEI Investments,The University of Scranton President’s Medal at the President’s Business Council’s 16th Annual Award Dinner at The Pierre in New York City. From left are: University of Scranton Interim President Rev. Herbert B. Keller, S.J., University of Scranton Interim President; McGonigle; and Patricia A. Byrnes Clarke ’86, P’17, ’19, chief talent officer, Havas, and chair of the PBC.

The President’s Business Council (PBC) honored Dennis J. McGonigle ’82, chief financial officer and executive vice president at SEI Investments, with The University of Scranton President’s Medal at its 16th Annual Award Dinner. Proceeds from the black-tie gala, which raised more than $1.2 million, support the University’s Presidential Scholarship Endowment Fund. More than 500 guests attended the dinner at The Pierre Hotel in New York City on Oct. 5.

Presidential Scholarships are four-year, full-tuition scholarships awarded to incoming freshmen with outstanding records in high school and notable community involvement. Through its past 15 dinners, the PBC has generated $13 million for the scholarship fund.

The President’s Medal recognizes individuals who have achieved excellence in their fields and demonstrated extraordinary compassion for others, representing lifetime achievements that reflect the University’s mission of Catholic and Jesuit excellence and service.

University of Scranton Interim President Rev. Herbert B. Keller, S.J., presented the medal to McGonigle with Patricia A. Byrnes Clarke ’86, P’17, ’19, chief talent officer, Havas, member of the University’s Board of Trustees and chair of the PBC. 

“Dennis, I am truly grateful for your commitment to the University, which is always focused on our Catholic and Jesuit mission. It is our privilege to honor you tonight,” said Fr. Keller, during his remarks at the dinner. He also noted that the evening is about the University’s students.

“At the heart of The University of Scranton are more than 5,000 students, ready to go out and change the world for the better,” said Fr. Keller. “Domestic and international service trips, research, mentoring and networking, all provide students the exposure to learn things about themselves that they never would have discovered on their own. Students are able to embark on such opportunities because of the financial aid and scholarships we are able to provide them. This assistance allows them to embark on an educational journey with us, grounded in our Catholic and Jesuit identity. Thank you for investing in our students.”

Rebecca Clark, Newark, Delaware, member of the University’s class of 2018, spoke on behalf of the Presidential Scholars.

“I would not be here before you today, or done any of the things I have accomplished over the past three years, without the Presidential Scholarship,” said Clark.

In addition to the full-tuition support, Clark spoke about other learning opportunities offered to the cohort of Presidential Scholars, including a summer leadership program.

“We spent the summer researching problems in today’s world and met back on campus a week before sophomore year began,” said Clark. “It was an amazing way to start my time at Scranton, meeting with people I wouldn’t normally see in my business classes, debating ideas and opinions that don’t normally get a chance to come up in the classroom.  It was my first experience like that, having lively debates and discussions about real world issues, but it would certainly not be my last at the University.”

Clark is a finance and accounting double major with minors in philosophy and business leadership. She is a member of both the University’s Special Jesuit Liberal Arts Honors Program and the Business Leadership Honors Program. During her college years, she interned at AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals in Delaware and PwC in Philadelphia and spent a semester studying abroad at King’s College in London. At Scranton, Clark was as captain of the crew team, a member of the Business Club and co-chair of the Kania School of Management’s Student Advisory Board. She is the daughter of Raymond and Jeanne Clark.

Also speaking at the event were dinner co-chairs Rachele Mackin Browning ’84, regional director of SEI Investment Company, and George Evans ’82, co-president of Convergence Inc. Past President Medal recipient Rev. Bernard R. McIlhenny, S.J., provided the invocation. 

About Dennis J. McGonigle

In his remarks, McGonigle referred to The University of Scranton as the “blessing of a lifetime” for all it afforded him. A member of the University’s Special Jesuit Liberal Arts (SJLA) Honors Program, he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in accounting. Soon after, he joined Arthur Andersen LLP and rose to the position of senior auditor. He moved to SEI in 1985 as a business manager and controller of the SEI mutual funds and SEI Financial Services, a subsidiary of SEI Investments. Over his 32-year career, he has worked across SEI in a number of leadership roles ranging from product and operations to market management, culminating in his appointment as CFO in 2002. He has been a member of SEI’s executive committee since 1995 and serves on the board of directors of a number of SEI’s subsidiaries.

In his current role as CFO, McGonigle is responsible for guiding the efforts of a number of teams within the company, including finance and accounting, corporate enterprise risk management, workforce development and the SEI Private Wealth Management unit. He is also integrally involved in the setting of SEI’s broader corporate strategy. Based in Oaks, Pa., and founded in 1968 as Simulated Environments Inc., SEI Investments is a leading global provider of asset management, investment processing and investment operations solutions for institutional and personal wealth management.

A member of the University’s board of trustees since 2008, McGonigle served as vice chair of the board until he completed his tenure in May. He is a member of the University’s President’s Business Council (PBC) and was recognized by the University in 2007 with the Frank J. O’Hara Distinguished Alumni Award. McGonigle is a member of the Wharton Fellows program, an executive education program, at the University of Pennsylvania. He is also the co-owner of Kimberton Whole Foods, a growing, regional chain of organic and natural foods markets. He served on the board of trustees of the Kimberton Waldorf School and on the board of directors of Wisdom Technologies Corporation. He is currently involved in promoting vocations to the priesthood with the Vocation Office of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

A native of Pennsauken, New Jersey, McGonigle graduated from Camden Catholic High School, where he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2014 for outstanding achievements through scholarship, service and leadership. He and his wife, Rachel, reside in Chester Springs and have three daughters: Audrey, Alyson and Alena.

For more information on the PBC, contact PBC Executive Director Timothy J. Pryle ’89 at 570-941-5837 or at pbc@scranton.edu, or visit scranton.edu/pbc.

Presidential Scholars of the University’s class of 2018 attended the PBC’s 16th Annual Award Dinner at The Pierre. Front row, from left, are: Rebecca Clark, Newark, Delaware, a finance and accounting double major and member of the University’s Special Jesuit Liberal Arts Honors Program and Business Leadership Honors Program who spoke at the dinner on behalf of the Presidential Scholars; Anne Kennedy, Conshohocken, a biochemistry, cellular and molecular biology and philosophy double major and member of the University’s Honors Program member and its Special Jesuit Liberal Arts Honors Program; Mary Halligan, Crofton, Maryland, a biology major and a member of the University’s Honors Program who will pursue a doctor of physical therapy degree at Scranton; Kathleen Heslin, Smithtown, New York,a biology major and member of the University’s Honors Program and its Special Jesuit Liberal Arts Honors Program; Erin Alexander, Linden, New Jersey, a psychology and philosophy double major and member of the University’s Honors Program and its Special Jesuit Liberal Arts Honors Program; and Laura Romanovich, Peckville, a biology and philosophy double major and member of the University’s Honors Program and its Special Jesuit Liberal Arts Honors Program. Back row: Cameron Hughes, Fairport, New York, a biology major; Daniel O’Reilly, Flushing, New York, an English, theology/religious studies and philosophy triple major and member of the University’s Special Jesuit Liberal Arts Honors Program; Michael Powell, Conklin, New York, a biochemistry, cellular and molecular biology and philosophy double major and member of the University’s Special Jesuit Liberal Arts Honors Program; Matthew Reynolds, Apalachin, New York, a biology and biophysics double major and member of the University’s Honors Program, and a Goldwater Scholarship recipient. Absent from photo were: Martha Carter, Greenfield Township, a biology major; and Caleigh Wildenstein, Aldenville, an English and environmental science double major.

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Rebecca Clark, a finance and accounting double major and member of the University’s Special Jesuit Liberal Arts Honors Program and the Business Leadership Honors Program, spoke on behalf of the class of 2018 Presidential Scholars at President’s Business Council’s 16th Annual Award Dinner. Proceeds from support the University’s Presidential Scholarship Endowment Fund.

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    More than 500 guests attended black-tie gala at The Pierre Hotel in New York City, which honored Dennis J. McGonigle and raised more than $1.2 million. Proceeds from the dinner support the University’s Presidential Scholarship Endowment Fund.

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