Saint Peter’s College will host the first Hearts & Minds: The Saint Peter’s College Annual Scholarship Dinner on Thursday, April 2, 2009 at the Pleasantdale Chateau in West Orange, New Jersey beginning at 6:30 p.m. As the College’s signature event, Hearts & Minds honors alumni and members of the College community, both individuals and organizations, who are models of integrity, leadership and generous service to others. Formerly known as the Distinguished Alumni Awards, this annual event supports the College’s general scholarship fund for undergraduate students.
This year’s Hearts & Minds event will feature performances by members of The Hudson Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Dr. YiLi Lin. Saint Peter’s will also premiere an inspirational film about the importance of giving back to the College with scholarship funding.
Throughout the evening, Saint Peter’s will honor the following the award recipients:
Francis G. Ziegler ’63 is the most recent past chairman of the Saint Peter’s College Board of Trustees. A devoted member of the Board for 
10 years, Mr. Ziegler served during a decade of strategic renewal at the College. During his tenure, Saint Peter’s introduced new academic programs, invested in faculty and infrastructure improvements and as a result, experienced increased admissions and a rising academic profile among incoming students. He also chaired the Presidential Search Committee that led the College to select Eugene J. Cornacchia, Ph.D., as its 22nd president.
Mr. Ziegler is the former president and CEO of Claneil Enterprises Inc. and worked for 30 years as an operations and marketing executive with Johnson & Johnson. During his career with J&J, he served as president of five J&J subsidiary companies in the United States and abroad. Among other accomplishments, in 1988 Mr. Ziegler co-founded SAFE KIDS WORLDWIDE in Washington, D.C., a leading children’s accident prevention program in 16 countries. His other non-profit affiliations include Children’s National Medical Center, Duke Children’s Hospital, the United Way and Boy Scouts of America.
Mr. Ziegler received a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from Saint Peter’s College, attended the University of Santa Clara Business School, and Advanced Management Programs at the Harvard and Columbia business schools. He led the development of a program in world-class manufacturing at the Duke Fuqua School of Business. He also served in the United States Marine Corps Reserve.
The Hon. Frank J. Guarini H ’94 served New Jersey’s 14th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives for seven terms. In 
addition to serving on the Ways and Means Committee and the Budget Committee, he was a Majority Whip-At-Large for the Democratic Leadership. When he had been a New Jersey State Senator, he also served on the Appropriation, Environmental and Transportation Committees.
During his career, Mr. Guarini has been extensively involved in trade matters, most importantly with the enactment of the Free Trade Agreement with Israel, and the North American Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico. Also, President William J. Clinton appointed him to serve as the U.S. Representative to the General Assembly of the United Nations.
The Jersey City, N.J., native earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Dartmouth College, as well as Juris Doctor (1950) and Master of Law (1955) degrees from New York University School of Law. He pursued advanced studies at The Hague Academy of International Law in the Netherlands. In 1994, Mr. Guarini, one the College’s most generous benefactors, received an honorary doctorate from Saint Peter’s, home to the Guarini Center for Governmental Affairs.
Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG) is a publicly traded diversified energy company with annual revenues of more than $12 billion, 
and three principal subsidiaries: PSEG Power, PSEG Energy Holdings, and Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G).
For more than 100 years, the company has been working to strengthen New Jersey’s communities, making it a better place to work and live. Its commitment is reflected in a range of programs that promote community and economic development and protect the environment. Saint Peter’s College is pleased to recognize PSEG as one of its most generous corporate partners, offering the support of various educational initiatives, including the funding of annual scholarships for many years.
The individual ticket price for Hearts & Minds is $400 per person and $250 for young alumni (classes 1998 through 2008).
To register, please visit the Office of Alumni Relations Web site. For additional information regarding table reservations, event sponsorship and journal ad reservations please contact the Office of Alumni Relations at alumni@spc.edu or (201) 761-7122. All donations and ticket reservations exceeding $150 are fully tax-deductible.