LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ - Rider University celebrates its 134th commencement on Friday, May 14, 1999, at 10:30 a.m. on the University's Lawrenceville Campus Green.

In addition to conferring 745 undergraduate degrees and 256 graduate degrees and professional certifications, Rush Holt, a first-term U.S. Representative from the 12th Congressional District, and Ronald Berman, chairman and CEO of the Trenton-based commercial development firm R. Berman Development Company, L.L.C., will receive Honorary Doctor of Laws degrees from the University.

The ceremonies include the presentation of the Rider University Awards for Distinguished Teaching. The awards, formerly the Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Awards for Distinguished Teaching, have been presented annually since 1961 to a pair of outstanding faculty members.

Seven Baccalaureate Honors Scholars and 313 students graduating with distinction will also be recognized.

Tracy Van Es of Secaucus, NJ, a bachelor of arts candidate in communication, will give the student commencement address. Van Es, who is graduating magna cum laude, has served the past year as president of Rider's Student Government Association (SGA).

Presenting the Class of 1999's gift to the University will be senior class president Dominique Prizgint of Wayside, NJ, a summa cum laude bachelor of science candidate in business administration and a Baccalaureate Scholar. The senior class raised more than $3,000 for the renovation of the Student Center patio area through the sale of engraved bricks for the Campus Walk.

Dr. Joseph Talarico of Watchung, NJ, professor of economics at Rider and a 1974 recipient of the Rider University Award for Distinguished Teaching, will lead the 10 a.m. commencement procession as the grand marshal. The grand marshal is traditionally the retiring faculty member with the longest current tenure at the University. Dr. Talarico joined the Rider economics faculty in 1967.

Dr. Scott McCoy of Princeton, NJ, associate professor of voice at Westminster Choir College of Rider University, will sing the national anthem. Ceremonial music will be performed by the Blawenburg Band, conducted by Dr. Jerry Rife, professor of fine arts at Rider and resident of Ewing Township, NJ.

Holt, elected to the House of Representatives last November, has quickly built an accomplished résumé in government, education, and science, and has worked specifically in applying the latter to the public good. With a B.A. in physics from Carleton College and a Master and Ph.D. from New York University, Holt has held positions as a teacher, Congressional Scientist Fellow, research scientist, and arms control expert for the State Department.

From 1989 until the beginning of his Congressional campaign, Holt was assistant director of the Princeton Plasma Physics laboratory, a major center for research in alternative energy. He has also researched solar wind and received a patent for a solar energy device.

His educational ideals have not diminished since his election, as he quickly won key assignments on the Committee on Education and the Workforce and the powerful Committee on the Budget. His legislative priorities include environmental protection, the livability of communities, school improvement, health care reform, and Social Security protection.

Berman, a native Trentonian and holder of A.B. and L.L.B. degrees from Rutgers University, has distinguished himself as a citizen and business leader through his development of urban projects as public-private partnerships. In 1984, he founded and served as chairman and CEO of DKM Properties Corporation, where he presided over the acquisition, development, and construction and asset management of office, retail, health care, and industrial space, as well as several mixed-use urban projects. After leaving DKM Properties in 1993, he founded R. Berman Development Company, L.L.C.

Among Berman's recent noteworthy accomplishments is the development and revitalization of Trenton's historic Roebling Complex into a commercial center and market. He is currently developing the highly anticipated Mercer County Arena and is co-owner of the Trenton Titans, a new East Coast Hockey League franchise that will play its home games in the new arena upon its scheduled completion in September.

For 25 years prior to concentrating on his own development activities, Berman was a real estate attorney representing major developers and municipalities. His many posts include serving as the first executive director of the County and Municipal Government Study Commission, and as the first assistant commissioner for public transportation for the State of New Jersey.

For those who cannot attend commencement, the University will provide a live broadcast the entire ceremony over the World Wide Web. The address is www.rider.edu/live.

Rider University is an independent, coeducational, nonsectarian institution with a 353-acre main campus in Lawrenceville, New Jersey and a 23-acre campus in Princeton, New Jersey. The University offers 60 undergraduate programs and 17 graduate programs in the Colleges of Business Administration; Liberal Arts, Education, and Sciences; Continuing Studies; and Westminster Choir College. Ninety-three percent of the faculty hold doctoral or other appropriate advanced degrees.

Rider's Lawrenceville campus is located five miles south of Princeton and three miles north of Trenton on Route 206 in Lawrence Township, NJ. The campus is one-half mile south of exit 7A of Interstate 95.