Lawrence Jay Oliva (September 23, 1933 – April 17, 2014), known as L. Jay Oliva, was the 14th President of

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, th ...

. Born in

Walden, New York Walden is the largest of three villages of the town of Montgomery in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 6,818 at the 2020 census. It has the ZIP Code 12586 and the 778 telephone exchange within the 845 area code. Walden ...

he earned a B.A. from

Manhattan College Manhattan College is a private, Catholic, liberal arts university in the Bronx, New York City. Originally established in 1853 by the Brothers of the Christian Schools (De La Salle Christian Brothers) as an academy for day students, it was la ...

(1955) and a M.A. (1957)/Ph.D. (1960) from

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

. He was a University Fellow at Syracuse, a Fribourg Fellow at the

University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

and a member of

Phi Gamma Delta Phi Gamma Delta (), commonly known as Fiji, is a social Fraternities and sororities, fraternity with more than 144 active chapters and 10 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Washington & Jefferson College, Jefferson C ...

. His father was Italian and his mother was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

-speaker from County Galway, Ireland; he lent NYU to Irish-themed celebrations and exhibitions under the aegis of his Presidency of

. He also supported the formal establishment of the University's Irish and Irish-American Studies program withi
Glucksman Ireland House NYU
in 1993. Oliva authored and edited numerous works on

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

n and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an history, including, "Misalliance: A Study of French Policy in Russia During the Seven Years' War" (New York University Press, 1964) and "Russia in the Era of Peter the Great" (Prentice-Hall, 1969). His fields of academic specialization are 18th-century Russia, Russian diplomatic history and 18th-century Europe. Oliva was given

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad h ...

s by

Tel Aviv University Tel Aviv University (TAU) ( he, אוּנִיבֶרְסִיטַת תֵּל אָבִיב, ''Universitat Tel Aviv'') is a public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Locate ...

(Doctor of Philosophy, 1994);

University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 33,284 student ...

(Doctor of Literature, 1993);

Hebrew Union College Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

(Doctor of Humane Letters, 1992); Saint Thomas Aquinas College (Doctor of Laws, 1989); and

(Doctor of Humane Letters, 1987). He was decorated a chevalier of the

French Legion of Honor The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

(1997) and received the Premio Guido Dorso of

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

(1998). Through Oliva's initiative, NYU was the founding member of the League of World Universities, established in 1991, whose membership now represents nearly fifty of the world's great urban universities. La Pietra, a cluster of five villas in

Tuscany it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Citizenship , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = Italian , demogra ...

bequeathed to NYU by the late Sir

Harold Acton Sir Harold Mario Mitchell Acton (5 July 1904 – 27 February 1994) was a British writer, scholar, and aesthete who was a prominent member of the Bright Young Things. He wrote fiction, biography, history and autobiography. During his stay in C ...

, and the Lillian Vernon Center for International Affairs at Washington Square, serve as hubs for international activities that draw scholars and students from around the world. Oliva also created the "NYU Speaking Freely" program to provide students with opportunities for language learning outside the classroom. In recognition of this work, he received the Foreign Language Advocacy Award in 2001 from the Northeast Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. He served as President of

from 1991 until May 16, 2002. Under his leadership the school's fund-raising efforts soared, increasing from approximately $100 million annually in 1991 to more the $350 million in 2001. In 1995 Oliva oversaw the completion of what was at that time the first billion-dollar campaign undertaken by an American university. Launched in 1985 under Oliva’s predecessor,

John Brademas Stephen John Brademas Jr. (March 2, 1927 – July 11, 2016) was an American politician and educator originally from Indiana. He served as Majority Whip of the United States House of Representatives for the Democratic Party from 1977 to 1981 a ...

, the campaign was successfully completed five years ahead of schedule. He signed the first contract between a private university and a graduate assistant labor union, the

Graduate Student Organizing Committee The Graduate Student Organizing Committee (GSOC) is a labor union representing graduate teaching and research assistants at New York University (NYU). GSOC is affiliated with the Technical, Office, and Professional Union, United Auto Workers Lo ...

of Local 2110/United Auto Workers. Oliva died on April 17, 2014, aged 80, of pancreatic cancer. Notice of death of L.J. Oliva
nyulocal.com, April 18, 2014.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Oliva, L. Jay 1933 births 2014 deaths American people of Italian descent American people of Irish descent Deaths from pancreatic cancer Manhattan College alumni People from Walden, New York Place of death missing Presidents of New York University Syracuse University alumni