Regina S. Peruggi (born c. 1947)Karen Arenson

''The New York Times'', May 25, 2004. Retrieved April 6, 2008. Age at time of article was 57. is an American

educator A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

, who was the President of

Education Update ''Education Update'' is an American non-profit monthly newspaper, published in New York City. It focuses on issues related to education and has a circulation of approximately 100,000. The publisher, retired education professor Pola Rosen, bega ...

'', January 2005. Accessed March 16, 2007. Prior to that, she was president of

Marymount Manhattan College Marymount Manhattan College is a private college on the Upper East Side of New York City. As of 2020, enrollment consists of 1,571 undergraduates with women making up 80.1% and men 19.9% of student enrollment. The college was founded in 1936. Hi ...

and led the

Central Park Conservancy The Central Park Conservancy is a private, nonprofit park conservancy that manages Central Park under a contract with the City of New York and NYC Parks. The conservancy employs most maintenance and operations staff in the park. It effectivel ...

. For 14 years (from 1968 to 1982) she was married to her second cousin,

Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani (, ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 107th Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney General from 1981 to 198 ...

Early life and education

Peruggi grew up in a

middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Commo ...

family in

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

.Press release
"Dr. Regina S. Peruggi is Named President of Kingsborough Community College of the City University of New York"

Kingsborough Community College Kingsborough Community College (KBCC) is a public community college in Brooklyn, New York. It is part of the City University of New York (CUNY) system and the only community college in Brooklyn.Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

parochial school A parochial school is a private primary or secondary school affiliated with a religious organization, and whose curriculum includes general religious education in addition to secular subjects, such as science, mathematics and language arts. The ...

s.Lynda Richardson
"A Scholarly Fund-Raiser's Stroll to the Park"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', May 4, 2001. Accessed April 6, 2008. She earned a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...

from the

College of New Rochelle The College of New Rochelle (CNR) was a private Catholic college with its main campus in New Rochelle, New York, but also in Australia, England, and Germany. It was founded as the College of St. Angela by Mother Irene Gill, OSU of the Ursuline ...

in 1967.

Career

She started her career as a

drug abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...

counselor Counselor or counsellor may refer to: A professional In diplomacy and government * Counsellor of State, senior member of the British royal family to whom the Monarch can delegate some functions in case of unavailability * Counselor (di ...

in a state jail. She worked as a

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

at the

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

, and

graduate school Postgraduate or graduate education refers to Academic degree, academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by higher education, post-secondary students who have earned an Undergraduate education, un ...

levels. In 1974 she joined York College of The City University of New York, then moved to

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

with

and worked as a coordinator at the Psychiatric Institute of Washington. Around 1980 she returned to school,"Regina Peruggi, President, Central Park Conservancy"
''

'', March 2004. Accessed March 16, 2007. and then earned a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

. By 1984 Peruggi worked in the central office of the City University system, and again returned to school at night, earning a

Doctor of Education The Doctor of Education (Ed.D. or D.Ed.; Latin ''Educationis Doctor'' or ''Doctor Educationis'') is (depending on region and university) a research or professional doctoral degree that focuses on the field of education. It prepares the holder for a ...

from

Teachers College, Columbia University Teachers College, Columbia University (TC), is the graduate school of education, health, and psychology of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Founded in 1887, it has served as one of the official faculties and ...

. By 1986, she had become an

associate dean Dean is a title employed in academic administrations such as colleges or universities for a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, over a specific area of concern, or both. In the United States and Canada, deans are usua ...

for the

City University of New York The City University of New York ( CUNY; , ) is the Public university, public university system of Education in New York City, New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven Upper divis ...

system, specializing in

adult education Adult education, distinct from child education, is a practice in which adults engage in systematic and sustained self-educating activities in order to gain new forms of knowledge, skills, attitudes, or values. Merriam, Sharan B. & Brockett, Ralp ...

programs. In 1990, Peruggi was named president of

, a position she held for eleven years; during this time the college's enrollment doubled. At Marymount, she was credited with turning around the institution financially, in part by recruiting wealthy business personages to the college's Board of Trustees.Ruth G. Davis
"The ''Very'' First Lady"
''

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

'', April 25, 1994. Accessed September 8, 2019. One professor said, "She's great at fund-raising, beefed up the student body and the faculty, devoted to community outreach and diversity, and brought a great moxie to the school." She served as the second President of the

from 2001 to 2004, where she sought to continue its restoration via increased fund-raising and appeared on the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

show '' Back to the Floor''. Peruggi was named president of Kingsborough Community College in May 2004. Under Peruggi's leadership, Kingsborough Community College experienced record-high enrollment numbers. It was also named one of the top four community colleges in the country when it was chosen as a Finalist with Distinction for the 2013 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. Having reached age 65, she announced she was stepping down in April 2014, effective at the end of the coming summer."CUNY Board Appoints Stuart Suss as Interim President of Kingsborough Community College"
Press release,

, April 29, 2013. Accessed June 2, 2014.Ned Burke
"Exclusive: Kingsborough President Regina Peruggi To Retire This Summer"
Sheepshead Bites, April 15, 2013. Accessed June 2, 2014. Peruggi has served on the

board of directors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...

of the GreenPoint Foundation, the

American Red Cross The American Red Cross (ARC), also known as the American National Red Cross, is a non-profit humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. It is the desi ...

of Greater New York, the Silver Shield Foundation, and the Center for Redirection Through Education. In 2006 she was honored as a 2006 New York State Senate Woman of Distinction. By 2009, Peruggi was the Chairperson Emerita and Chairperson of the Commissioners of the

Women's Commission For Refugee Women and Children The Women's Refugee Commission is a 501(c)(3) Non-Governmental Organization that aims to improve the lives and protect the rights of Women, Children, and Youth displaced by conflict or crisis. Established in 1989 by Norwegian Actress and film ...

; on the Board of Managers of the Havens Relief Fund Society; and on the boards of

Berkeley College Berkeley College is a Private college, private for-profit college with campuses in New York (state), New York, New Jersey, and online. It was founded in 1931 and offers undergraduate and graduate degrees and certificate programs. Berkeley Coll ...

, the

Academy of Mount St. Ursula High School The Academy of Mount St. Ursula is a Catholic girls’ college preparatory school in the United States, which was founded in 1855 as a part of the Monastery of St. Ursula in the town of Morrisania (now a part of the Bronx, New York). In 1892, ...

, the Brooklyn Economic Development Corporation, the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, and the

International Longevity Center The Joseph L. Mailman School of Public Health is the public health graduate school of Columbia University. Located on the Columbia University Medical Center campus in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, the school ...

."Job Creation and Workforce Development Summit"
New York City Global Partners,

City of New York New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, June 25, 2009. Accessed November 12, 2009. In 2008, Peruggi was named to the Commission on Lifelong Learning of the

American Council on Education The American Council on Education (ACE) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) U.S. higher education association established in 1918. ACE's members are the leaders of approximately 1,700 accredited, degree-granting colleges and universities and higher education ...

and around the same time was named to the Advisory Board of the Student World Assembly.

Personal life

On October 26, 1968, Peruggi married

, her second cousin, whom she had known since childhood. In 1975, the couple agreed to a trial separation. Giuliani met local television personality

Donna Hanover Donna Hanover (born Donna Ann Kofnovec; February 15, 1950) is an American journalist, radio and television personality, television producer, and actress, who appears on CUNY TV in New York City. From 1994 through 2001 she was First Lady of New Yo ...

in 1982, and they began dating when she was working in Miami. Giuliani filed for

legal separation Legal separation (sometimes judicial separation, separate maintenance, divorce ', or divorce from bed-and-board) is a legal process by which a married couple may formalize a separation while remaining legally married. A legal separation is gra ...

from Peruggi on August 12, 1982. The Giuliani-Peruggi marriage legally ended in two ways: a civil divorce was issued by the end of 1982, while a Roman Catholic church

annulment Annulment is a legal procedure within Law, secular and Religious law, religious legal systems for declaring a marriage Void (law), null and void. Unlike divorce, it is usually ex post facto law, retroactive, meaning that an annulled marriage is c ...

of the Giuliani-Peruggi marriage was granted at the end of 1983 reportedly because Giuliani had discovered that he and Peruggi were

second cousins Most generally, in the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a cousin is a type of familial relationship in which two relatives are two or more familial generations away from their most recent common ancestor. Commonly, ...

Alan Placa Alan J. Placa (born 1944
New York Times) is an

1940s births Living people Presidents of campuses of City University of New York College of New Rochelle alumni Teachers College, Columbia University alumni New York University Stern School of Business alumni People from the Bronx American people of Italian descent Catholics from New York (state)