LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ -- Dr. Dominick L. Finello (left), professor of Spanish at Rider University, is the recipient of the second Dr. Dominick A. Iorio Faculty Research Award. He received the prestigious award at Rider's annual Founder's Day program.

Dr. Iorio, who retired in June 1997 after 24 years as dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Science, presented the award in recognition of distinguished faculty scholarship and research. Nominations for the award came from the faculty.

Dr. Iorio called Dr. Finello "a scholar whose work on Miguel de Cervantes has been judged by his peers and by the international community of Cervantes scholars to be significant, incisive, and illuminating.

"His four books, 29 published articles, and numerous professional presentations in the United States and abroad demonstrate not only a distinguished scholarly record, but attest to a mind committed to the importance of the liberal arts and to the formation and nurturing of the intellect."

Dr. Finello, a member of Rider's Spanish faculty for 27 years, published his fourth book, Cervantes: Essays on Social and Literary Polemics (London, Tamesis) early in 1998. The book examines several controversial issues about Cervantes' thinking and artistic creativity.

In addition to his books, Dr. Finello has published articles and reviews in highly regarded journals such as Hispanic Review, La Torre, Revista de Filologia Espanola, Anales Cervantinos, Hispanic Journal, Anuario de Letras, and Bulletin of the Cervantes Society of America.

Dr. Finello has taught more than 20 courses at Rider, helped revise the Spanish curriculum many times, and introduced the study of Italian. He received his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and his B.A. degree in Spanish from Brooklyn College.