Three Receive President’s Medals at Virtual Event
University of Scranton President Scott R. Pilarz, S.J., is pictured with 2020 President’s Medal recipients John R. Mariotti, D.M.D., ’75 (left) and Margaret “Maggie” Quinn Mariotti, Au.D., P’10 (right); and with Monsignor Joseph G. Quinn, J.D., J.C.L., ’72 (left – in a separate photo). They were honored during the virtual President’s Business Council (PBC) 19th Annual Award Celebration on Oct. 8.The virtual President’s Business Council (PBC) 19th Annual Award Celebration honoring Margaret “Maggie” Quinn Mariotti, Au.D., P’10, John R. Mariotti, D.M.D., ’75 and Monsignor Joseph G. Quinn, J.D., J.C.L., ’72, raised more than $900,000. Proceeds from October 8th celebration, during which the honorees were presented with the University’s President’s Medal, support the University’s Presidential Scholarship Endowment Fund, and this year will also support the James P. Sweeney, S.J., Family Outreach Fund for students facing unexpected financial hardship and the Scott R. Pilarz, S.J., Scholarship, a need-based scholarship established in 2011 by the Sorbera Family.
“Tonight, we gather in spirit from all over the country and the world,” said Rev. Scott R. Pilarz, S.J., president of The University of Scranton at the virtual celebration. “Tonight, we celebrate what is best about Scranton. Our honorees Maggie and John Mariotti and Monsignor Quinn are great examples of the best about Scranton. Ours is a University committed to building community and I know few people who are more committed to building community than these great friends – Maggie, John and Joe.”
In presenting the President’s Medal, the University and the PBC recognize individuals who have achieved excellence in their fields and who have demonstrated extraordinary compassion for others while personifying the University’s mission of Catholic and Jesuit excellence and service.
In his remarks, Father Pilarz recalled that Monsignor Quinn chaired the University’s Presidential Search Committee in 2003 “that had the audacity to pluck someone out of the classroom with no administrative experience and whose scholarly life was dedicated to 16th century poetry. Only Joe Quinn would have an imagination big enough to make me the President of The University of Scranton.”
Father Pilarz said Maggie and John Mariotti were his “special Scranton welcome wagon,” noting “their love for Scranton was contagious.”
Five of the University’s class of 2021 Presidential Scholars also spoke during the celebration: Molly Elkins, Owings, Maryland, a biochemistry, cell and molecular biology and philosophy double major and member of the Special Jesuit Liberal Arts Honors Program, undergraduate Honors Program and the Magis Honors Program for STEM; Hannah Graff, Melville, New York, an accounting major currently pursuing her master’s in accountancy with a concentration in forensic accounting; Jacob Myers, Ambler, a biochemistry, cell and molecular biology and philosophy double major and member of the Special Jesuit Liberal Arts Honors Program and the Magis Honors Program for STEM; Megan Osborne, Mifflinville, a mathematics major; and Amanda Tolvaisa, Springfield, an English and philosophy double major and member of the University’s Special Jesuit Liberal Arts Honors Program.
The Presidential Scholars expressed their gratitude to those whose generous support made their scholarships possible, and spoke of the research, internship and academic opportunities the scholarships offered to them.
“The Presidential Scholarship and my time at Scranton has given me an unrivaled education in science supplemented by a robust background in the humanities,” said Myers. “This experience has allowed me to participate in several research programs funded through the NSF (National Science Foundation) over the last several years. This past summer, I had the opportunity to work on determining how long SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, survives on surfaces in order to better understand its transmission.”
Through its previous 18 dinners, the PBC has generated over $16 million for the Presidential Scholarship Endowment Fund.
The President’s Business Council (PBC) 19th Annual Award Celebration can be seen here. For additional information, contact Timothy J. Pryle ’89, executive director of the PBC, at 570-941-5837 or pbc@scranton.edu.
About the honorees
Dr. Margaret “Maggie” Quinn Mariotti is a retired clinical audiologist whose private practice included offices in Honesdale and Clarks Summit. She has held several clinical audiologist positions at various institutions, including the U.S. Army Hospital Ear, Nose and Throat Clinic at Fort Stewart, Ga. Dr. Mariotti also taught as an adjunct professor in the communication sciences and disorders program at Marywood University.
She was a Pennsylvania Speech and Hearing Association liaison and served as a board member of the Women’s Resource Center and the IHM Foundation. Dr. Mariotti was a member of the University’s Board of Trustees from 2003 through 2010. She earned a bachelor’s degree in communication sciences and disorders from Marywood University, a master’s degree in audiology from Temple University, and a doctorate in audiology from the University of Florida.
Dr. John R. Mariotti has worked as an orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics practitioner for 35 years and is certified by the American Board of Orthodontics. Dr. Mariotti earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University and a doctor of dental medicine degree from Temple University. He was commissioned as a U.S. Army captain in the Army Dental Corps at Fort Stewart, Ga. After completing his tour of duty, Dr. Mariotti pursued his post-graduate degree in orthodontics at the Eastman Dental Center at the University of Rochester. At Eastman, he conducted research in growth and development and TMJ disorders.
Dr. Mariotti served as president and chair of the board of the Scranton District Dental Society and is a past board president of the Middle Atlantic Society of Orthodontists. An active member of the University’s Medical Alumni Council, he became a member of the Board of Trustees in 2019.
The Mariottis, who reside in Jefferson Township, have four children.
Monsignor Joseph G. Quinn has been a priest in the Diocese of Scranton for 35 years and currently serves as pastor of Our Lady of the Snows Parish in Clarks Summit. For 16 years, he was the rector of St. Peter’s Cathedral. Prior to his current role, he was the vice president for mission and ministry at Fordham University.
Monsignor Quinn received a bachelor’s degree in accounting from The University of Scranton and a juris doctorate from Seton Hall University. At the age of 25, he was appointed a federal magistrate judge for the U.S. District Court, becoming the youngest person in the country to serve in that position. After resigning his post, he entered the seminary and completed his studies at the North American College in Rome, earning graduate degrees in theology from the Gregorian University and the Angelicum University.
He has served on numerous boards, including as a member of the Board of Advisors of the North American College and as the founding chairman of the Scranton Preparatory School Board of Trustees. He is a former member of the University’s Board of Trustees, which he served for 15 years.
The Quinns are two of the 12 children of the late June Scanlan Quinn and John A. Quinn Sr., D.D.S., ’40.
