Wednesday, Nov 5, 2014
Schwartz founded the Department of Communication, Journalism, and Media at Rider University
A memorial service for Dr. Howard Schwartz will be held in the Bart Luedeke Center Theatre on Thursday, Nov. 13, at 4 p.m. A reception will follow in the Cavalla Room.
Schwartz, professor emeritus who founded the Department of Communication, Journalism, and Media at Rider University, passed away on June 28 at age 76 after battling non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Howard Schwartz Scholarship Fund, c/o Rider University, Office of University Advancement.
Rider University President Mordechai Rozanski said he was greatly saddened by the death. “He was a wonderful colleague and friend, beloved by the many generations of students he taught, advised and mentored."
Schwartz was born in Bridgeport, Conn., on July 2, 1937. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in broadcasting and speech from Emerson College in Boston, Mass. He served as debate coach and speech instructor at New York University from 1961 to 1962, then went on to complete his doctoral studies at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., from 1962-1965.
Soon after, Schwartz began teaching at the University of Maryland. In 1968 he joined Rider, where he taught for the next 37 years. During his tenure at Rider, Schwartz founded the Department of Communication, Journalism, and Media and served as its chairman until his retirement in 2005. He also served as president of the Rider Faculty Senate and received the Lindbach Distinguished Teaching Award in 1982. Upon his retirement, the New Jersey Assembly and Senate honored Schwartz with a joint resolution praising him for his many accomplishments.
Schwartz had a deep and personal love for Rider’s Equal Opportunity Program, which he helped develop in 1969. Along with his wife, Harriett, also a Rider professor, he mentored innumerable students who were able to attend college through the EOP. In 2005, he was designated a New Jersey State EOP Champion and in 2009 honored by the New Jersey Equal Opportunity board of directors as “A Fortunate Find.”
“Throughout my tenure, I have heard numerous alumni recount stories of how Howard shaped their lives,” Rozanski said. “He had a big heart and was a transformational member of the Rider community. We share our deepest condolences with Howard’s wife, Harriett, and his extended family. He will be greatly missed.”
In addition to his wife, Schwartz is survived by his daughters, Joanne Schwartz and Susan Kushner, son-in-law David Kushner, and granddaughters Samantha and Mia Kushner.
