Alumni Profile: Bob Cancro

Bob Cancro’s (RC ’73, GSE ’78) career in education began as an accident. Originally Bob studied engineering, but then decided to explore different areas in the liberal arts. He initially pursued a teaching certificate “just in case”, but teaching became his full-time profession and passion.

Bob began his 17-year educational career as a teacher primarily working in junior high schools and then moved onto administration serving as a Vice Principal and Principal in both middle schools and high schools.

“I had great experiences every place I went. They were all a little bit different, but kids are kids. They may come from different backgrounds, but they’re all in that learning stage and hopefully you get a chance to bring them from wherever they are to a different level.”

After retiring from education administration, Bob remains highly active within the Rutgers and the Graduate School of Education (GSE) community. He serves as a supervisor for GSE student teachers, a task he calls “the fun part of education.” He takes great pride in giving back to the school by helping young teachers “find who they are.” This semester, Bob is mentoring three student teachers with focus on social studies.

Last year, Bob became an active member of the GSE Alumni Association by joining the executive board.  “I wanted to give back to the GSE because I realized that if I hadn’t gotten that master’s degree, I wouldn’t be where I am today.” Bob looks forward toward working with the Alumni Association with the overall goal of helping students. He looks forward to organizing programs that connect students with graduates.

“Being a Rutgers alumnus means you are part of an organization and institution that is the epitome of a great research university. There’s research, teaching, and service and I think the GSE in particular does all of those things really well.”

Outside of his contributions to the GSE, Bob serves as a high school and college football official and proudly shows his support as a Rutgers alumnus. He is more than excited that Rutgers will be joining the Big Ten next year. 

“I’m proud of where I’m from, proud of what we’ve done, and I’m looking forward to great things in the future.”