Frank ’58 and Gloria Maraviglia on their wedding day in 1961.
The State University of New York (SUNY) at Oswego has received a generous gift of $2 million from Frank L. Maraviglia, an alumnus from the Class of 1958. Maraviglia’s gift is in recognition of the exceptional education he earned at the university that helped him lead a fulfilling life as an educator.
The gift advances the university’s Vision 4040, a bold initiative launched this year by President Peter O. Nwosu to increase upward mobility and strengthen regional economic development in Central New York by doubling the number of degrees and credentials from the university to 40,000 per decade by the year 2040.
The gift also establishes the Maraviglia Education Enrichment Fund in the university’s highly regarded School of Education, which will support scholarship and engagement opportunities for students as well as innovative academic programming from the faculty.
In recognition of the gift, the School of Education’s main entrance between Wilber and Park halls will be named the Maraviglia Atrium. The SUNY Board of Trustees approved the naming at its full board meeting on Dec. 5.
SUNY Oswego’s President Peter Nwosu said, “Mr. Maraviglia’s generosity will make an enormous impact on the lives of our students and help produce more qualified teachers to address the teacher shortage in our K-12 school system and contribute immensely to the talent development needed to further advance economic development in Central New York. We are deeply grateful for this transformative gift.”
SUNY Oswego’s Provost Scott Furlong said, “The Maraviglia Education Enrichment Fund will infuse additional resources into the School of Education that will expand access and opportunities for experiential learning to more students. His generous donation offers the school a fantastic opportunity to invest in innovative programming and academic experiences.”
School of Education Dean Laura Spenceley noted, “It is fitting that the atrium in the School of Education, which will now be known as the Maraviglia Atrium, will carry the name of one of our distinguished alumni who spent so much of his career inspiring others through his own teaching. Mr. Maraviglia’s gift will support all students in the school and enable us to deliver high-impact experiences that will prepare them well to be leaders in their own classrooms.”
Maraviglia said he is honored to have his name in such an awe-inspiring space on campus.
“If you look up my name, you’ll see that it means ‘to wonder,’” said Maraviglia, who spent 35 years as a professor of architectural landscape at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse, N.Y. “My hope is that in this atrium, students will wonder about and dream about their future. I am very humbled by the particular spot that will carry my name. But what’s important in all of this are the students. I believe in the students.”
About the donor
Frank Maraviglia of Jamesville, N.Y., is a 1984 recipient of the Oswego Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumnus Award. An industrial arts graduate from 1958, he began his career as a high school teacher on Long Island, earning accolades and recognitions early on, including the Graphic Arts Teacher Summer Scholarship Award, one of only 13 teachers in the U.S. selected by the International Graphic Arts Education Association to receive the award in the early 1960s. He was selected in 1963 to attend the first International Congress on Printing Education in Montreal, Canada. He also earned a master’s degree from Hofstra University in 1963 and additional degrees from Syracuse University and SUNY Buffalo.
From 1964 to 1999, Maraviglia served as a professor of landscape architecture at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse, N.Y. A co-founder of the consulting firm Creativity Unlimited, he advised numerous global companies, such as IBM, AT&T, General Electric and Carrier Corp., on employing creative problem-solving to advance their businesses. He was honored by being named a Colleague of the Creative Education Foundation in Buffalo, N.Y. He received the New York State United University Professionals Excellence Award in 1991. He retired from his teaching career as a professor emeritus from SUNY ESF in 1999.
Throughout his life, Maraviglia has been committed to community, having served in the U.S. Army Signal Corps from 1952 to 1954, volunteering with such community resources as the Everson Museum of Art and the Onondaga Nature Center, chairing the New York State Employee Assistance Program Advisory Board and participating in numerous professional, alumni and community development organizations. Even in retirement, Maraviglia continued to serve SUNY, acting as the ESF coordinator of the Campus Retiree Program’s SUNY ESF Emeritus Center.
He and his wife, the late Gloria Jean (Procopio), were married for 62 years. His brother, Raymond, is a 1961 graduate of SUNY Oswego, as are several members of his wife’s family.
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About SUNY Oswego
SUNY Oswego is a 162-year-old institution in the State University of New York system. The university enrolls more than 7,000 students in more than 170 academic programs across its College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; School of Business; School of Communication, Media and the Arts; and School of Education. For more information, visit oswego.edu.
A photo illustration depicting the Maraviglia Atrium