Cloudy, rainy skies didn’t stop nearly 250 Fordham grads, faculty, staff, and friends from gathering at the Penn Club in New York City on January 23 to celebrate the alumni network and recognize two Rams for their ongoing support of the University and their fellow alumni.
Sophie Scott received the Trailblazer Award, and Errol Pierre was named Ram of the Year at the eighth annual Fordham University Alumni Association (FUAA) Reception.
Leaning on the Fordham Community
Pierre, senior vice president of state programs at Healthfirst, the largest nonprofit health insurance company in New York, graduated from the Gabelli School of Business in 2005. He ran track, majored in finance, and pursued a series of internships that “really drove me to my passion” for increasing access to health care, he once told Fordham students.
Upon accepting the Ram of the Year Award, he shared a harrowing story of his senior year, when he was arrested due to a case of mistaken identity. Before he was released, he turned to a fellow Ram on the track team, who enlisted their coach for help.
“To this day, I always tell that story because it reminds me of the Fordham community,” said Pierre, who remains an active Ram as a member of the President’s Council, a group of successful professionals and philanthropists committed to mentoring Fordham’s future leaders. In 2022, he told Fordham Magazine that giving back, particularly to students of color, has been a goal of his since graduation.
“Let’s be inspired tonight, let’s fellowship, let’s meet someone we haven’t known, and let’s make sure we continue the Jesuit tradition of giving back to others,” he added.
Lesson No. 1: Ask for Help
Scott, who earned three Emmy Awards as an associate producer for Anderson Cooper’s weeknight news broadcast on CNN, told attendees about how she got a bit lost in the halls of the Lowenstein Center on her first day of classes at Fordham.
She asked two people for help. They turned out to be Keith Eldridge, assistant vice president and dean of student services, and Jenifer Campbell, Ed.D., dean of students.
That interaction changed her life, she said, as they both kept in touch and made sure she got involved on campus. As a student, Scott was a resident first-year mentor and class representative to the Young Alumni Committee, on which she served as chair after graduating from Fordham College at Lincoln Center in 2018 with a degree in journalism.
“It was because of their belief in me that I ever got involved on campus,” said Scott, who is now a senior communications associate at Marathon Strategies. “It was because of their belief in me that I ever dared to apply to an internship at CNN.”
Scott also held internships at the Today show and WABC-TV. She has shared how pivotal those internships were for her future—that they “really kick-started” her career.
“What makes Fordham so extraordinary is that the members of the community care enough to truly embody the Jesuit tenets in a way that gives each new wave of students the encouragement they need to go forth and set the world on fire,” she added.
The FUAA, a dues-free group established in 2017 to unite alumni from all of Fordham’s schools, hosts an annual reception, with a biennial awards ceremony.
The Ram of the Year Award honors a grad for enhancing the reputation of the University through their professional achievements, personal accomplishments, and loyal service to Fordham. And the Trailblazer Award is given to a graduate from the past 10 years whose leadership is an inspiration to their fellow alumni.
