The County College of Morris (CCM) Board of Trustees held its annual reorganization meeting on November 16 and elected its officers.
Elected were Jeffrey M. Advokat, Esq. as chair; George J. Milonas as vice chair; Jack N. Frost, Esq. as treasurer; and Dr. Barbara L. Hadzima as secretary.
Appointed to the CCM Board of Trustees by the Morris County Board of County Commissioners were Devanshu L. Modi, Esq. and Cathleen M. Paugh.
Continuing their service on the board are George E. Dredden III, Lauren C. Inganamort, Paul R. Licitra, Morris County Interim Executive County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Timothy J. Purnell and Dr. Joseph S. Weisberg.
Advokat is a senior partner of Advokat & Rosenberg, Esq. in Morristown, and a former Morris County Assistant Prosecutor. Professionally he has tried thousands of matters in all levels of court throughout his 41-year career and has garnered a 95 percent rate of success. He has experience in the classroom having taught business law at Caldwell University, the American Institute of Paralegal Studies, the New Jersey Assistant Prosecutor’s Association and the New York Chiropractic College. He earned his law degree from Hofstra University, his master’s Fellowship in Government from the Eagleton Institute of Rutgers University and his bachelor’s degree from Rutgers. He has served on the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) Communications and Education Committee and is a frequent lecturer for ACCT on the topic of board ethics. Advokat has published on a number of topics, is a regular talk radio guest and has appeared on television, including the Phil Donahue Show. Advokat also serves on the New Jersey Council of County Colleges Executive Committee, and State and Federal Policy Committee.
Milonas is a corporate sector leader, with experience in working with multinational companies specializing in the strategic design, implementation and oversight of global enterprise compliance and risk management programs. He began his higher education at CCM earning an associate in science degree in Criminal Justice. He received his master’s in Administrative Science from Fairleigh Dickinson University and bachelor’s in Sociology from Centenary University.
Frost is an attorney with Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP. He earned his law degree from Seton Hall School of Law, and his bachelor’s and master’s in Philosophy and International Relations from the University of St. Andrews, Scotland, U.K.
Hadzima is a retired middle school administrator and college adjunct. She has participated in the Chinese Bridge Delegation (Hanban/Confucius Institute Headquarters) to Chinese Universities which focuses on school visits, cultural activities and educational workshops. She contributed to the New Jersey ALPHA Peace/Reconciliation Program in China, Hong Kong and South Korea. Additionally, she was sponsored by New Jersey for program studies at European concentration camps and at Yad Vashem in Israel. Hadzima then assisted with the development of the New Jersey State Curriculum Guide to teach Holocaust/Genocide. She earned her doctorate in Educational Leadership from Seton Hall University, her master’s degree from Kean University and her undergraduate degree from the College of St. Elizabeth.
Modi is a founding member of the Morris County law firm of Lyon, Glassman, Leites & Modi, L.L.C. and was recently selected by the Department of Justice’s U.S. Trustee Program to serve as a Subchapter V Trustee under the Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019. He is a former Deputy Attorney General in New Jersey and previously served as an investigator with the Bureau of Securities. He served on the Harding Township Board of Education and, subsequently, on the Harding Township Committee. He earned his law degree from Seton Hall School of Law and bachelor’s degrees in Business Administration and Accounting from the University of Delaware.
Paugh began her higher education at CCM, which she credits for connecting her with her first professional job at Prudential Financial that turned into a successful 34-year career. She retired last year from Prudential after serving in several senior roles within Prudential’s finance organization, most recently as the Head of Global Reinsurance Strategy. She is a sought-after advisor to boards and executives in corporate finance, financial planning and analysis, capital markets, strategic planning, deal execution and regulatory compliance. Her community involvement includes serving as a board member and advisor for a nonprofit specializing in child abuse and family service, and running various mentoring programs in startup organizations and other not-for-profit groups. She earned her master’s degree in Business Administration from Columbia University and her bachelor’s in Accounting from Fairleigh Dickinson University.
Dredden is the chief of staff to Assemblywoman BettyLou DeCroce. He earned his Master of Divinity degree from Drew University’s Theological School and bachelor’s in Political Science from Johns Hopkins University.
Inganamort served as manager of Global Compliance at Tiffany & Co. in Parsippany, where she was responsible for the development, execution, and management of compliance programs and risk assessments. She received the company’s Finance Achievement for Commitment to Excellence Award for exceptional dedication and service. Inganamort serves as a trustee for the Educational Foundation of the Chesters and on the Advisory Committee of the New Jersey Governor’s STEM Scholars program. She is the recipient of the President’s Volunteer Service Award for her work on behalf of military families whose loved ones were receiving treatment at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. She earned her master’s in Engineering Management and holds two bachelor’s degrees in Engineering from Dartmouth College.
Licitra currently serves as office administrator for Senator Steven Oroho, Assemblyman Parker Space and Assemblyman Hal Wirths, and serves as the Sergeant of Arms for the New Jersey Senate. He also possesses extensive experience in insurance spanning more than 45 years, covering all aspects of risk management for large domestic and international clients. In the public sector, he served as mayor of Mount Olive from 2000-04 after serving eight years on the Township Council. He earned his bachelor’s degree from St. John’s University, where he also taught as an adjunct professor in the Tobin College of Business. He also served on the Association of Community College Trustees Public Policy and Advocacy Committee, charged with reviewing public policy issues and recommending positions, the New Jersey Council of County Colleges (NJCCC) State and Federal Policy Committee, and the board of directors for the Brigadier General William C. Doyle Veterans Memorial Cemetery. Licitra currently serves on the NJCCC State and Federal Policy Committee.
Weisberg is professor emeritus of Geoscience at New Jersey City University. He earned his Ed.D. from Columbia University, his master’s in Science Education from Montclair State University and his bachelor’s in Science Education from Jersey City State College, now New Jersey City University. He is a recipient of the Ronald D. Winthers Trustee Leadership Award from the New Jersey Council of County Colleges for his many years of service to CCM as a trustee and former board chair, and to New Jersey’s higher education community through writing and co-authoring three college texts. Weisberg was the former mayor of Parsippany-Troy Hills.
