Excellence in Leadership

June Dwyer Castano ‘55

If leadership means the ability to motivate team member, June Dwyer Castano embodies the true spirit of leadership.  Throughout the years, she has inspired those who serve with her in the many projects and activities she has embraced.  From her many years as a professional journalist and educator to her varied community and volunteer accomplishments, June has approached each challenge and activity with a thoroughly contagious enthusiasm.  With her philosophy, “If we cannot have fun doing it, it’s not worth doing,” she has led others to excel in their involvement in myriad activities.

June served as a youth and children’s editor and the women’s editor for The Advocate for seven years and as a drama teacher at Mount Saint Dominic Academy for seven years.  During the ensuing years, she brought those professional skills to a host of projects and activities including authoring the book, Make Media Work, for Renew International Christian groups and as Marketing Director of CASTANO QUIGLEY LLC.

June is credited with founding and directing the Collegians, a musical comedy company that toured New Jersey raising funds for scholarships in the 1950s and 1960s.  She authored plays, acted in, and directed more than 100 theatrical productions for several local theatre groups and production companies.

As one of Caldwell College’s most dedicated and involved alumnae, June served three terms on the Alumnae Board as president of the Essex Alumnae.  She chaired a Scholarship Bridge fundraiser, served on the College’s Planning Committee on the Middle States Preparation Committee, authored seven children shows and produced three Caldwell College concerts including the 60th Anniversary Alumni Concert, and coordinated the First DeWitt Basketball League for high school boys. Recipient of the Alumnae of the Year Award, Who’s Who Among Young Women, and the President’s Award, June was the founding chair of the Veritas Award and Dinner.

In her parish and community, June has always been involved in a variety of activities ranging from barking hundreds of Thanksgiving pies as a grade school fundraiser, to membership on the Parish Council, to inclusion in the West Essex Ministerial Association, to coaching a girl’s basketball team.  A Dame of Malta, she chaired the year-long Centennial of Mount Saint Dominic Academy and was named to the Academy’s Hall of Fame.

In addition to a B.A. in English from Caldwell College, June earned an M.A. in English from Seton Hall University, New Jersey and M.A. in Theatre from Villanova University, Pennsylvania, where she studied as a Schubert Fellow in Playwriting.

June is married to Gregory T. Castano, a former Caldwell College Board of Trustees member, and is the proud mother of Gregory, Christopher, John and Timothy.

Excellence in Ecology

Sister Miriam Therese Macgillis O.P. ‘64

“Her greeting is warm, her handshake firm, and her appearance casual..her calm eyes and the soft tone of her voice speak of peace and serenity, belying her earnest dedication to a very demanding life.  It is impossible not to be impressed by her quiet energy and her sense of purpose.”

This description of Sister Miriam Therese MacGillis is by journalist Sally Walther, and it well depicts the Dominican Sister who started her career as an art teacher and quickly focused her energy into a social consciousness which has led to a unique and fulfilling way of life..for herself and for others.

Sister Miriam Therese is the Director of Genesis Farm in western Warren county, New Jersey, which she co-founded in 1980.  She lives and works at Genesis Farm, where she describes as “..a learning center where people of good will are welcome to search for more authentic ways to live in harmony with the natural world and each other.”  The farm practices bio-dynamic methods of agriculture which are in tune with the natural rhythms of Earth.

At the farm, a large kitchen provides a teaching center for food preparation classes emphasizing non-processed, natural foods.  Presently, over 200 families from the region are shareholders in its economic support. An ongoing series of conferences on topics range from Parenting for a Peaceful Earth to Shiatzu: Art of Healing and Relation.  A new program in Earth Literacy at Genesis Farm now offers accreditation for both graduate and undergraduate students.

Since 1977, Sister Miriam coordinates programs exploring the works of Thomas Berry as he has interpreted the New Cosmology.  Sister Miriam lectures extensively and has conducted workshops and seminars in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia and the Pacific.

Excellence in Psychology

Carol Norcia Funk, Psy.D. ‘68

With much of her professional life dedicated to helping children through crises, Carol Norcia Funk, Psy.D. has an eight page curriculum vitae which is a clear testimony to her extensive work and caring attitude pursuing programs that benefit families.  Licensed by the State of New Jersey for the practice of Professional Psychology, Carol maintains a practice for individual therapy, family psychotherapy and rehabilitation counseling in East Brunswick. She earned her B.A. from Caldwell College in 1968, an M.A. in School Psychology at the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology, Rutgers University, New Jersey, 1980.

Carol has spent the last 10 years working with family and domestic violence issues and is concerned that there is so little awareness of the needs of children.  With colleagues, Carol presented a workshop for Superior Court Judges of Morris County which became a model for the State Judicial College. The program addressed the psychological ramifications of the courtroom on children and gave advice on how judges could interview children without intimidating them.

During the Persian Gulf War, Carol coordinated a program, subsequently emulated by other states, which galvanized over 300 New Jersey psychologists to provide pro bono support to military families.  For her perception of the needs of families and her concept of organizing and providing mental health services for these families, Carol received a citation from the New Jersey State Senate, NJP-Care, which Carol co-chairs, evolved as the pro bono unit of the New Jersey Psychological Association and continues to offer support groups as well as one-on-one counseling for disaster victims and AIDS patients, among others.

Through her long involvement with the Court in Middlesex County and the Division of Youth and Family Services, Carol has observed that so many children are victims of parents who were victims of dysfunctional families themselves.  As a result, she has developed a specialty in the area of Adult Children of Alcoholics and Codependency. In addition, she has worked with people who suffered from traumatic memory in early childhood.

Carol has lectured extensively, including a number of symposia and workshops on subjects such as “Separation Issues and The Military Family During the Gulf War,” “Can Men and Women be Friends?”, “Moral Decisions for Career Women in the 80s” and “Issues of Intimacy and Sexuality in Pastoral Care.”

Carol is married to Ronald and is the proud mother of Matthew.