Alumni Profiles: Sandy Moore & Carol Grasz

Dr. Sandy Moore (GSE ’77) and Dr. Carol Grasz (GSE ’77) met in class at the Graduate School of Education (GSE). From their first meeting, the two became instant friends and followed similar paths pursuing their doctorate degrees in Educational Administration and Supervision.  Forty-six years later, the friendship fostered at the GSE remains strong as they reflect on their educational and professional journey.

 

Before coming to the GSE, Dr. Moore received her undergraduate and master’s degree in elementary education at Newark State Teachers College (now known as Kean University). Dr. Grasz initially pursued a career in business at New York University before switching to elementary education after she got married. Although their paths toward coming to the GSE were different, Dr. Moore and Dr. Grasz both admired the diversity within the GSE community and appreciated how it contributed to a rich learning experience at the school. The sense of camaraderie among students and faculty was a strong factor in what both women credit to be their source of support in working on their dissertations and accelerating their career. During their time in the program, they had the same advisor, Dr. Eleanor Delaney, whom they view as “not only our advisor, but a friend and it was a friendship that we treasure.”

 

The road to becoming an educational administrator was not easy for women at the time. Dr. Moore remembers at one point that out of the 600 school districts in New Jersey, there were exactly ten women superintendents. “Women didn’t have the choices that they have today” Dr. Grasz adds. However, with the support from their GSE community and the skills that they had acquired through their education, both were able to overcome the challenges and today they encourage women to take on these administrative positions.

 

Following graduation, both women pursued fulfilling careers in educational administration positions. Dr. Moore served as an administrative principal for 25 years before moving on to the University level as Dean of Academic Support at Centenary College. Dr. Grasz served as a principal for 22 years in Bayonne, NJ.

 

Now in retirement, Dr. Moore and Dr. Grasz still engage in various activities to stay active within their community.  Dr. Moore has been an active volunteer at Hunterdon Medical Center and Dr. Grasz has served on various community boards as well as worked with several nonprofit organizations.

 

Giving back to the GSE community is something that both women find very important. Dr. Moore appreciates the camaraderie of the GSE community and how it fostered lifelong friendships within her. “There are places where you feel you’re just a number. At the GSE you weren’t a number. You had connection.”  These connections carried on through their professional careers and even beyond as they are always informed about news happening at the University. For Dr. Grasz  giving back to her alma mater means expressing how much her education helped her and her family as her daughters are Rutgers alumni. She finds giving back to the GSE especially important. “They gave me the opportunity to elevate within my profession and so I’d like to give back.”

 

To learn more about how to give back to the Graduate School of Education, click here.