Rockville Centre, NY - March 21, 2003 - Molloy College kicked off the launch of Long Island's first-ever Center for Business Ethics with a keynote address by NYS Attorney General Eliot Spitzer and a panel of prominent regional business leaders.

Addressing a standing-room only audience of 350, Mr. Spitzer spoke about the challenge of giving independent board members a greater role in the corporate boardroom, where intimate understanding of a company's inner workings is a prerequisite. He also stressed the importance of incorporating ethics into the curriculum at every level of the educational system, and encouraged the entire community to take a stake in the ethical behavior of our corporate and organizational citizens.

The venue and the mechanism for that discussion took center stage as Molloy establishes Long Island's first Center for Business Ethics. In announcing the initiative, Molloy College President Drew Bogner stated, "The principles of ethics and leadership through service have been intrinsic to the Molloy experience since its founding. It is a distinctive approach which, when seen in light of our Catholic and Dominican philosophy and outlook, compels us to produce prominent programming for the business community on the subjects of ethics and social responsibility."

CNBC's Ron Insana led eight panelists* through a question-and-answer period where the general consensus was for a strengthened emphasis on individual ethics at all levels of a company's operations. The panelists also pointed to the need for a non-retributory mechanism for encouraging and rewarding vigilance and forthrightness in addressing ethical lapses when they occur.

The new Center for Business Ethics is an outgrowth of Molloy's mission. The Center targets three distinct audiences: the business community, the public at large and Molloy College students with a variety of program options, and is dedicated to promoting ethical business conduct in contemporary society. Through a network of practitioners and scholars, it provides a forum for the understanding and discussion of ethical business practice through educational programming, and is committed to developing strategies for ethical business conduct and providing a bridge between theoretical and practical business activity. Its primary objective is to help Molloy students understand and come to grips with ethical dilemmas of the present and the future.

"Dr. Bogner added, "Our region is the world capital of commerce. The leaders of commerce are here. The discussion of business ethics will take place here. Molloy College is here. Because of our geography, tradition and values system, it would be a missed opportunity to not provide the forum for this vital discussion."

The topic of business ethics is not a mandated component of higher education. What differentiates Molloy from its like is that the principles of ethics and leadership have been intrinsic to the Molloy experience since its founding.

For more information about Molloy's Center for Business Ethics, call 516-678-5000.

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Press Contact: Michael Allen Harrison Kathryn Carroll
Molloy College Harrison Leifer DiMarco PR
Tel: 516-678-5000 x6266 Tel: 516-536-2020
Fax: 516-255-4832 Fax: 516-536-0219
mharrison@molloy.edu
kcarroll@hldcreative.com

* LI Business Panelists
Peter Quick, President, American Stock Exchange
Matt Crosson, President, Long Island Association
Doug Kurz, Office Managing Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers
Ron Blaylock, CEO, Blaylock & Partners
Michael Dowling, CEO, N/S LIJ Health Systems
Tom O'Brien, CEO, Atlantic Bank of New York
Nancy Nugent, Esq., LIPA Board of Directors
Fred Price, CEO, Sandler O'Neill