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William Paterson University held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on November 30, 2023 to celebrate the dedication of the Allan & Michele Gorab Alumni Center in the John Victor Machuga Student Center on campus—the new home for the Office of Alumni Relations and the University’s more than 85,000 alumni.
Allan Gorab ’72, who served as president of the Alumni Association from 1992 to 2000, and his wife, Michele, made a lead gift in 2001 to establish a home for alumni at the Allan and Michele Gorab Alumni House in nearby North Haledon. The move to the Machuga Student Center is designed to provide additional opportunities for alumni to interact and engage with students.
“We are all really excited about this latest evolution of alumni relations at William Paterson because it brings the Alumni Center to the heart of our busy campus, where alumni return throughout the year to participate fully in the life of the University community,” said President Richard J. Helldobler. “For more than two decades, the Allan & Michele Gorab Alumni House served us well, and I know that this new Center in this prime campus location will open up new possibilities and serve our current and future alumni – and, by extension, the entire William Paterson community – well for many years to come. So, again, thank you Allan and Michele for all that you have done and continue to do for William Paterson, our students, and our alumni.”
“We are so happy to be here today,” said Allan Gorab, who with his wife Michele has been a loyal donor to the University for 41 years. “WP is so close to my heart. We’re very pleased by the move to the campus and hope it brings more alumni back to become involved with our students.”
The new, inviting space, on the third floor of the Machuga Student Center, overlooks the campus with a view of Zanfino Plaza and is adjacent to student-focused offices, including the Career Development Center, home of the Pesce Family Mentoring Institute, as well as the Career Closet; the Student Government Association, the Office of Student Diversity and Inclusion, and student club offices.
“Allan and Michele Gorab knew from the beginning the importance of having an alumni space to gather and office space for a growing alumni relations team. When the project first started 25 years ago, it was Allan and Michele who were front and center, naming the Alumni House on Harmon Place in Haledon,” said Pamela Ferguson, vice president for institutional advancement and president of the William Paterson University Foundation. “As involved as ever in the University, when the opportunity arose for us to bring the alumni gathering space and alumni relations team to the main campus, Allan and Michele were 100 percent on board. So today, we gather not only to dedicate this suite as the Allan & Michele Gorab Alumni Center but also to celebrate the generosity and selflessness of two wonderful University friends.”
Allan Gorab, who is a retired general manager of Koch Modular Process Systems, has been a member of the William Paterson University Foundation Board since 1998 and serves as chair of the Foundation’s scholarship committee and a member of the finance committee. Michele Gorab is a retired paralegal for the Ford Foundation.
Together, they have supported a wide range of fundraising efforts, including the annual fund and scholarships. They established the Joseph A. Gorab Scholarship in honor of Allan’s late uncle, an inspirational educator and superintendent of Manchester Regional High School in Haledon, as well as the Allan and Michele Gorab Endowed Scholarship. They are members of the Heritage Society, which celebrates loyal donors who have given to William Paterson for 20 or more years.
The Allan & Michele Gorab Alumni Center is located in the John Victor Machuga Student Center, Suite 302. To contact the office, call 973-720-2175.
