September 14, 2013
Two seems to be a special number for Thomas Joyce '73CBA, '77MBA, at least when it comes to his involvement with St. John's University. He earned two degrees at St. John's, studied on two different campuses as an undergraduate, and remains exceptionally active with two separate alumni constituent groups.
Joyce began his studies at the Schermerhorn Street campus in downtown Brooklyn, and quickly developed an attachment to the camaraderie for which the "vertical campus" had always been known.
"The Schermerhorn Street campus was very packed and filled with lots of energy and excitement," he recalled. "I think it created a good comradeship because when we were not in class everyone was in the cafeteria. We were all in what they called the Quonset Hut at that time. There actually were Quonset Huts in the back of the building! There was a good espirit de corps there among all the students. I remember that the Business students and the Education students seemed to get along well together, and I was involved in some of those groups as a student."
When the Schermerhorn Street campus closed in 1971, Joyce continued his education on the University's new Staten Island campus, the site of the former Notre Dame College on Grymes Hill. It was a smooth transition, and it didn't take him long to take advantage of what the new location had to offer.
"Going from Schermerhorn Street to Staten Island, the first thing that struck me was that we now had a much lovelier campus with more buildings and, of course, grass and trees that we didn't have in downtown Brooklyn. But it was still a small campus with a relatively small number of students. You kind of knew everybody. Even if you didn't know their names, you knew their faces, so we all felt pretty close to each other. And we had more places to go on campus, plus there were more places to do things in the surrounding neighborhood. Schermerhorn Street and Staten Island each had very different characteristics, of course, but what really kept the attachment strong, at least for me, were the people. For me, the people of St. John's have always been very special."
Joyce credits the University with helping to get him started on his successful business career. He believes that the combination of his solid Business education coupled with St. John's reputation for excellence among New York employers gave him an advantage that wasn't available to graduates of other institutions.
"St John's has always been known for its Business students, and being in New York I had plentiful opportunities for interviews that the University set up for me when I was starting out. I'll always be thankful for that."
This loyal alumnus expresses his gratitude in a variety of ways. Currently Director of Securities Processing at Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation, he is instrumental in inviting St. John's students to get a firsthand look at the inner workings of the financial services industry as part of the Alumni Insider's View…Day on Wall Street, a unique program in which alumni share their personal and professional expertise in career-related settings. As a successful business executive, he continues to be impressed with how the quality of St. John's students has remained consistently high over time.
"It's a little hard to get a good feel for the students after only having them tour here for one hour," he said, "but I have to say that the ones who come here are great. I have stayed involved with even more current students through things like the Staten Island Alumni Association. I've gotten to see the students from the 1970s all the way up to the past few years, so I've been able to judge the product that the University turns out. St. John's is still turning out a good product. The faces may have changed a bit over the years, but the end result is the same."
Joyce has never forgotten his ties to the two campuses that served as home during his student days. He is an active participant in activities sponsored by both the Schermerhorn Street Alumni Association, where he serves on their Reunion Committee, and the Staten Island Alumni Association. He is also a Red Storm men's basketball season ticket holder.
Looking back on the more than four decades that have passed since he became a member of the St. John's family, he readily acknowledges that the University is as important to him today as it ever was.
"My connection to St. John's has always been a personal thing," he noted, "as much or more about the people than simply about the academic education. Not to discard the education, obviously, but the people made the University what it was when I was going to school, and it's still that way today. The University helps to mold people. It's a mixture of the education, the Vincentian values, and the people that you meet at St. John's. For me, the St. John's family will always be a special part of my life."