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St. Francis College Athletic Director
Will Serve as Consultant
Aquilone ‘Retires’ But He’s Not Saying Goodbye
BY BERNIE BEGLANE
“This is not a goodbye.”
Dr. Frank Macchiarola, president of St. Francis College, took time out from a reception he was hosting to mark the retirement of Ed Aquilone, athletic director of the Terriers.
Honored, too, were Dr. Gerald Largo, academic dean, and Dr. Richard Halverson, executive vice president of financial affairs, as they also are retiring from their duties at the Franciscan Brothers’ school in Brooklyn Heights.
While Aquilone, a 1960 graduate of St. Francis College, no longer will be athletic director, he will remain as a consultant to Dr. Macchiarola, a position he held earlier.
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Irma Garcia |
Irma Garcia, the associate athletic director who formerly coached the women’s basketball squad, has been named interim AD.
“Ed,” said the school’s president, “will not work in athletics exclusively.
“He will be helpful to me in so many other areas just as he has been in the past.”
Previous Consulting Duties
The Terriers’ president was referring to the period of 1996-2000 when Aquilone also served as his consultant.
During that period Ed was appointed acting director of alumni affairs and later acting director of athletics.
Aquilone, who served with the New York City Board of Education from 1960-89, assumed the AD’s position in September 2000.
“Ed,” continued Dr. Macchiarola, former chancellor of the New York City Department of Education, “is a man who does everything well.
“I have known him a very long time and he has been a remarkable person with whom I am proud to be associated.
“It was while Aquilone was at Community School District 15 (as director of operations) that I appointed him executive director of the Division of Personnel for the Board of Education.”
Beginning at St. Francis Xavier School, Park Slope, Aquilone has received his entire education from the Franciscan Brothers.
St. Francis Prep was his second stop where he played both baseball, and basketball, handball and volleyball.
“Upon graduation, I went to work on Wall Street,” said Ed, “and I was drafted into the Army and served 15 months in Korea.
Played at St. Francis
“After my discharge I enrolled at St. Francis College, and played varsity basketball as a sophomore and junior.”
While a college student, Aquilone worked at a summer boys camp conducted by the then Brooklyn Dodgers in Dodgertown, Vero Beach, Fla.
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AT ‘RETIREMENT’ RECEPTION, St. Francis College athletic director Ed Aquilone, is shown with his wife, Carmen, left, and Jeanine Ramirez, a family friend and reporter for
New York 1 News.
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After completing studies for his undergraduate degree, the Brooklyn native earned a graduate degree in education from LIU where he helped coach the freshman basketball team.
Ed also was the New York City director for the New York State Empire Games from 1978-2000 and the director of the Diocese of Brooklyn CYO from 1990-93.
Plus he found time to be the consultant to the principals committee of the CHSAA.
In his career with the New York City Board of Education that covered 1960-89, Aquilone was a teacher for six years, a guidance counselor for five, an assistant principal for three and principal for 18 months before assuming the position of executive director of personnel.
As for retiring effective June 1, Ed explained, “While I want to spend more time with Carmen (his wife) and our family, I was not anxious to get out completely.
“Frank and I first became acquainted while parishioners at Our Lady Help of Christians Church (Midwood).
“Now we are the best of friends. And as Frank mentioned, this is not a goodbye.”
Successful Rutgers Football Coach Has a
Few Words for Colleagues
By Bernie Beglane
So much for law school!
After a standout career as a football player at Bucknell University, Greg Schiano was headed for law school.
Then came a phone call from the Canadian Football League offering him a tryout. What to do?
Schiano turned to Mike Miello, his high school coach.
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Greg Schiano |
Miello’s advice?
“You are young and you are single,” stated Mike.
“Go ahead and have some fun…try it for a year.
“If it doesn’t work out you can come back and work with me and get ready for the LSATs.”
Schiano did just that and made it to the last cut. And when that pink slip was handed to him, Schiano returned home and launched his coaching career at Ramapo High School, Franklin Lakes, N.J.
And, as they say, the rest is history.
The former linebacker at Bucknell became an assistant coach with the Chicago Bears of the National Football League and then the defensive coordinator of the Miami Hurricanes.
Miami won the Sugar Bowl championship in 2000, posting an 11-1 record and finishing No. 2 in the national rankings.
All of which led to being hired as head coach at Rutgers University on Dec. 1, 2000.
The Scarlet Knights are now among the elite teams not only in the Big East Conference, but in the country.
Proof positive was the victory over Kansas State in the inaugural Texas Bowl last season.
Little wonder that Miello recalled the first double session Schiano endured when he returned to work with him.
“I came home that night and said to my wife, “He will never see a day of law school.
“He is just such a natural. He’s been out there one day, and it is like he’s been there for 20 years.”
As a result of his coaching success, Schiano was invited to be a guest speaker at the Frank McGuire Foundation’s seventh annual High School Coaches Seminar earlier this month at Madison Square Garden.
And it was an excellent choice considering the mission of the foundation:
acknowledge and celebrate coaches who exemplify integrity, achievement and a continual quest for excellence from themselves and their athletes.
Sean Darcy, president of the Frank McGuire Foundation, not only had Greg on hand as the guest speaker, he also had Miello, now coach at William Paterson University, as one of five guest panelists.
Jack Kaiser, former director of athletics at St. John’s University, is one of the founders of the McGuire Foundation.
“The sports, education and leadership equation does not occur in a vacuum,” said Kaiser.
“Young student/athletes, finding their way, look to the presence and deeds of high school coaches who embrace and teach respect, trust, loyalty, honesty, tolerance and charity.”
Since its inception, the foundation has provided over $380,000 to high schools in the New York metropolitan area. Coaches representing many sports receive individual grants for their schools’ sports programs.
“These honorees received financial grants for their program because each of these coaches, in their own individual way, makes a difference,” related Kaiser. “They have made, and continue to make, a tremendous and positive impact on their student/athletes as they go from adolescence to adulthood.”
Three Local Past Honorees
It should be pointed out that our diocese has produced three past honorees.
The first in 1999, and rightfully so, was Jack Curran of Archbishop Molloy, Briarwood.
Two years later it was Ed Bowes, track and field coach at Bishop Loughlin, Clinton Hill.
And in 2005, Jim Gatto, longtime basketball coach at St. John’s Prep, Astoria, was acclaimed.
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