Albertus Magnus College Class of 2020 Dedicates Professor Ron Waite Memorial Bench
Class Gift Made as Graduates Prepare for Dual Commencement Ceremony
New Haven, Conn., April 19, 2021 – The Albertus Magnus College Class of 2020 today dedicated a memorial bench in the area of the Celentano Soccer
Field to honor longtime and popular Professor Ron Waite. Waite passed away July 13
of last year after a long and brave battle with cancer.
Prior to his death, Waite had been the Communications Department Chair since 1975
and took great pride in building relationships with students and preparing them for
careers in journalism and law school.
Waite is a graduate of Fairfield University, earning both a B.A. in Sociology and
an M.A. in Communications. He later received a Certificate of Advanced Study in Art
(Film and Video) from Wesleyan University. An avid tennis player, sports fan, instructor,
and photographer, his numerous accomplishments include having photos published by
Sport Illustrated, ESPN Magazine, and Tennis Magazine. He coached the men’s and women’s
varsity tennis teams at Albertus from 1994 to 2006. He was also a frequent contributor
to the New Haven Register, sharing editorials on a wide range of topics including
distance learning and electronic solutions for Sheff v. Connecticut.
On May 16, 2021, President Dr. Marc M. Camille will confer undergraduate and graduate degrees in a joint Commencement ceremony to the Classes of 2020 and 2021 during the College’s historic 95th Anniversary Year. The celebration will take place in front of the iconic Rosary Hall and will include several of the annual traditions that date back nearly a century to the College’s first graduations.
About Albertus Magnus College
Founded in 1925, Albertus is a coeducational Catholic College in the Dominican tradition. Albertus' values- and liberal arts-based education is recognized by external rankings such as US News & World Report, Money, and The New York Times, and has been named a Top 10 Military Friendly School. For ten consecutive years, at least 95% of Albertus graduates have attained employment or gone on to graduate studies within six months of completing their degrees. The College has an enrollment of approximately 1,300 students across its traditional undergraduate, accelerated adult undergraduate, and graduate program levels. Proud to enroll a student body where nearly half of its undergraduate students receive Federal Pell Grants and are first-generation college goers, Albertus is known for its innovative curricular offerings, recently launching new Bachelor's degree programs in Nursing, including BSN and Connecticut's first LPN-to-BSN; General Health Sciences; Interdisciplinary Studies; and Public Health.
Among its graduate offerings is the State of Connecticut's only Master of Arts in Art Therapy and Counseling program, and it is just one of three schools to offer a Master of Science in Human Services. In 2025-26, Albertus is celebrating its historic 100th Anniversary and completing implementation of the Albertus 2025: Lighting the Way to a Second Century strategic plan, with a bold vision to "be a destination liberal arts-based college, distinguished in its interdisciplinary and experiential approach to education, rooted in Dominican values, that prepares students for lifelong civic engagement and success." To learn more, please visit albertus.edu.