Memorial Day Message From President Bloom
NJIT Community Members,
I write today to offer my best wishes this Memorial Day and to remind us all of the importance and purpose of this holiday. I also encourage us all to keep those who have been lost to the COVID-19 pandemic and their loved ones in our thoughts at this time.
Memorial Day provides an opportunity for us to pause and honor those who have died while serving in the U.S. military. This practice originated in the years following the Civil War and became an official federal holiday in 1971.
So, today I especially would like to thank all NJIT’s veterans and current members of the Armed Forces for their service. Their courage and selflessness are to be admired and modeled.
NJIT is a university that has tremendous appreciation for our women and men in the Armed Forces as well as deep and meaningful connections to the United States military. We have hundreds of students and thousands of alumni who are veterans, and NJIT has been the home to Air Force ROTC Detachment 490 since 1949. That unit has been training and commissioning new leaders, as 2nd Lieutenants, for the United States Air Force for more than 70 years.
NJIT also has an extensive history of contribution through research and technological innovation related to issues of national defense, security, and resource management. We have partnered with the U.S. Department of Defense, the Picatinny Arsenal, the McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst Joint Base, as well as major defense contractors that include Lockheed Martin, Exelis Electronic Systems, BAE Systems, and L-3 Communications Systems, among others. And NJIT’s Institute for Brain and Neuroscience Research is delivering life-enhancing therapies and mitigating the effects of traumatic brain injuries frequently suffered by soldiers.
We, at NJIT, believe it is always an important component of our mission to support those serving on our behalf in the United States military. They are among the best of us, and we are deeply indebted to them as well as their families and loved ones, who sacrifice greatly to enable their service. So, please join me today in thanking those who have served or are actively serving, and reflecting upon those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty.
May you have a peaceful Memorial Day.
Sincerely,
NJIT President Joel S. Bloom
