NJIT President Awarded Ellis Island Medal of Honor

Joel S. Bloom, president of New Jersey Institute of Technology, received the prestigious Ellis Island Medal of Honor at the 34th annual ceremony on Ellis Island in New York Harbor May 11.

The award is presented annually to U.S. citizens who “embody the spirit of America in their salute to tolerance, brotherhood, diversity and patriotism.” Since the medal was founded in 1986, the Ellis Island Honor Society (EIHS) has honored distinguished and diverse Americans, including seven presidents of the United States, Vice President Joe Biden, Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, Nobel Laureates Elie Wiesel and Malala Yousafzai, Coretta Scott King, John Sculley, Muhammad Ali, Lee Iacocca and Rosa Parks, among other outstanding Americans.

The Ellis Island Medals of Honor Ceremony is sponsored by the EIHS, whose mission is to honor and preserve America’s diversity and foster tolerance, respect and understanding among religious and ethnic groups. The society also supports the restoration and maintenance of Ellis Island.