FDU benefactors and supporters raise over $300,000 for Silberman College of Business students at the 2023 Hall of Fame Gala
written by FDU Silberman College of Business
Silberman College of Business is thrilled to announce that over $300,000 was raised at this year’s Hall of Fame Gala honoring Neil Goldmacher B.S.’85, Rita Karachun B.S.’85, Al Lustgarten MBA’82, and Lester Owens MBA’91. The event was held on Friday, October 13, 2023, on the Florham Campus in Hennessy Hall and the Italian Gardens. We were truly fortunate to have had such a beautiful night! The night included dinner, a silent auction, a speech from SCB student Louis Mignone followed by a paddle raise. It ended with a cigar and whiskey bar from Mobile Cigar Lounge, owned and operated by Joey Mac Dizon, a veteran and FDU Veterans Launching Ventures alum.
Get to know the honorees
This year Neil Goldmacher, Rita Karachun, and Al Lustgarten were inducted into the Silberman Hall of Fame, joining 16 SCB Hall of Fame Gala Inductees.
Neil Goldmacher
Neil Goldmacher, class of ’85, currently serves as Chairman of National Tenant Representation for Newmark. and is one of the most sought-after real estate advisors in the US. He joined Newmark in 1995 as a Senior Managing Director and became a Principal in 2000. He currently serves as Chairman of the National Tenant Representation.
Goldmacher specializes in national tenant advisory services with an emphasis on strategic planning and corporate services. A seasoned industry veteran, Goldmacher is vastly experienced with multimarket transactions spanning a global scale. His scope of expertise includes various types of real estate requirements in addition to complex and structured projects with sophisticated corporate users.
Additionally, Goldmacher is highly experienced with corporate services work in the financial services industry, with an enviable roster of premier clients to match. He has completed notable national portfolio work for the following clients, such as Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and JP Morgan Chase, among many others.
An active industry and community leader, Goldmacher is a member of the Industrial and Office Real Estate Brokers Association and Real Estate Board of New York and serves on the board’s leasing brokers committee. Neil also serves on the Board of Directors of Creative Art Works, a New York-based nonprofit.
Rita Karachun
Rita Karachun, class of ’85, is Senior Vice President of Finance and Global Controller at Merck & Company. Rita is responsible for all accounting and reporting aspects for Merck. In this role, Rita has oversight responsibility for all accounting at Merck including developing accounting policies for Merck, the interpretation of those policies for specific transactions, and the consolidation of Merck’s results. Rita also oversees Merck’s external reporting, the accounting for business development activity, managing the financial supply chain of intercompany sales transactions as well as the accounting and reporting associated with collaborations.
Rita joined Merck in 2007 as an Assistant Controller for Schering-Plough and continued as Assistant Controller for Merck after the merger between Schering-Plough and Merck in 2009. In these roles, Rita led the integration of Schering-Plough’s acquisition of OBS, a Netherlands-based company, and also led the implementation of a global consolidation system.
Before joining Schering-Plough, Rita worked at AT&T Corp. and its leasing subsidiary, AT&T Capital, for 16 years. Her last position with AT&T was Assistant Controller and Chief Accountant. Rita held a variety of roles at AT&T of increasing responsibility, including investor relations manager and controller of corporate units. Prior to AT&T, Rita was a senior partner at Arthur Andersen & Co.,
Rita is a member of the Board of Directors for JBWS, a not-for-profit organization whose mission is the prevention of domestic violence through the protection and empowerment of the victim, the rehabilitation of family members, the advocacy for social reform to prevent partner violence, and the education of the public about domestic violence and its consequences. Rita is also a member of Financial Executive International’s (FEI) committee on corporate reporting and an advisory member to the AICPA’s future of finance initiative.
Rita is a certified public accountant and a chartered global management accountant, earning a B.S. degree in accounting from Fairleigh Dickinson University, graduating Summa Cum Laude.
Al Lustgarten
Al Lustgarten, MBA class of ’82, has served as Hearst Television’s senior vice president, technology, and information services, since 2020. He was previously the company’s vice president, technology and information services and, before that, manager of information services.
Lustgarten oversees the company’s information technology function and advertising operations. He provides strategic leadership for many of the company’s new technology initiatives, including artificial intelligence, machine learning, and analytics; has played a critical role in overseeing Hearst Television’s cloud transformation; and has led all aspects of its security program.
During his tenure at Hearst Television, Lustgarten played instrumental roles in developing the company’s sales and financial reporting systems and its IT and communications infrastructures. Lustgarten also has held leadership roles within the television industry, especially focused on efforts to modernize business practices. He was a founding member of the TV Interface Practices (TIP) Initiative, a working consortium formed by local television broadcasters dedicated to promoting open interfaces to streamline advertising transactions for broadcasters and their media agency partners.
In 2022, in partnership with colleagues from Gray Television, Graham Media, and CoxReps, Lustgarten was instrumental in Hearst Television’s investment in a Media Sales Gateway named Admiral — a sell-side tool that provides both the infrastructure and workflows to automate converged advertising sales.
Lustgarten serves on numerous industry and Hearst corporate advisory committees and boards, representing the interests of Hearst Television’s technology, security, and ad operations, and has been a frequent speaker at industry and partner conferences. In 2022, he was named among “Broadcast Media’s Top Tech Leaders” by Radio+Television Business Report
Prior to Hearst Television, Lustgarten served in several finance, accounting, and technology positions within Hearst. He first joined the company in 1981, in the Hearst Magazines accounting and finance department.
Inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award
Silberman was excited to introduce the Lifetime Achievement Award, with Lester Owens, MBA class of ’91, as our first honoree. Lester joined Wells Fargo in 2020 and was the first African American to become a member of the Operating Committee reporting to the CEO. He held the role of Senior Executive Vice President and head of Operations of Wells Fargo & Company until his recent retirement. During his tenure, he led more than 100,000 employees globally and was responsible for building an integrated approach to Wells Fargo’s business operations functions across the firm.
Lester has more than 30 years of leadership, risk management, and operations experience in the financial services industry. Prior to joining Wells Fargo, he was Global Head of Operations at Bank of New York Mellon, where he was responsible for a team of 20,000 employees supporting every stage of the client investment lifecycle.
Additionally, Lester spent 10 years at JPMorgan Chase, where he was responsible for Global Wholesale Banking Operations, among other roles. He previously led significant operations functions for Deutsche Bank, Citibank, and Bankers Trust.
Lester is currently Chairman of the board of directors of Robert Wood Johnson Barnabas Health, Inc., the leading academic health system in New Jersey. He is the first African American to hold this role. He was previously a member of the Board of Directors of the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) and the chair of the Clearing House Interbank Payments Systems Board.
Lester earned his undergraduate degree at Long Island University but at Fairleigh Dickinson University, we know Lester best through his commitment and engagement with the Silberman Business College. He is an alumnus of the FDU Executive MBA program. He embodies the FDU values and mission of developing global citizens through classroom and experiential learning, helping our students reach their full potential. Lester has always been incredibly generous with his time, in spite of his demanding schedule. His advice has been insightful and highly valued by the Silberman College of Business Team.
In addition, Lester’s dedication to mentoring students and encouraging them to get the most out of their academic experience and take charge of their careers is inspiring.
Silberman named a fund in honor of Lester — The Lester Owens Lifetime Achievement Fund — which will provide funding for scholarships and professional development and will be awarded to deserving students enrolled in the Silberman College of Business.
Our Sincerest Gratitude
This event would not have been possible without the help of our sponsors, volunteers, vendors, and FDU staff. Special thanks to our sponsors:
- Wells Fargo
- Alpha Business Solutions
- Garden Homes
- Valley Bank
- Mazars
- My Limo Service
- Edgewood Properties
- RWJBarnabas
- Narcissus Floral
Thank you to:
- FDU Facilities and Aramark staff who aided with the event going off without a hitch.
- Our dedicated student workers — Joseph Nigro, Mikaela Searight, Fiorella Merrimen-Mendez, Abigail McDonald, Fady Meckey, Jack Mitchell, and Jasmine Mathai.
- All the amazing, generous attendees who came to celebrate our honorees and donated to support Silberman students.
