Rowan Gives Day benefit the Emergency the Lifetime Service Award recipient during Scholarship Fund. Alumni, family and the luncheon. Stay tuned for more details. At press time, our second annual friends are welcome to participate. Runners Noon, Eynon Ballroom, #RowanGIVES Day kicked off will receive a Run For Rowan swag bag, Chamberlain Student Center to celebrate philanthropy and water bottle and T-shirt. A short awards Athletic Hall of Fame service throughout the Rowan ceremony will follow the race. Registration Induction Ceremony community with a 24-hour giving until race day is $25. Alumni may benefit from early bird registration for $20 through Sunday, October 9 challenge encouraging alumni, March 31. Get more info and register today Celebrate the 1990 Men’s Soccer National students, faculty and staff to at alumni.rowan.edu/runforrowan. Championship team, Crystal Feo Engelhart support student scholarships 8:30–9:45 a.m. check-in, bib pickup ’99, Maggie Goodman-Reed ’06, Maurice and the areas of campus most 10 a.m. race start, Student Center Patio, Ransome ’94 and Josh Swartz ’09 at the Chamberlain Student Center important to them. Please visit 2016 Rowan-Glassboro State Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. rowan.edu/rowangives for a Phillies vs. Braves and 11 a.m., Eynon Ballroom, full list of #RowanGIVES Day Pregame Party Chamberlain Student Center supporters and more about Friday, May 20 giving to Rowan University. Take your family and friends out to the ball game with the Rowan University save the date Alumni Association! The Office of Alumni Rowan Alumni Engagement will host a pregame party at 28th Annual Rowan University Career Webinar Series McFadden’s at the Ballpark from 5–7 p.m. Foundation Golf Tournament Monday, June 6 Every Wednesday The Phillies vs. Braves game begins at 7:05 Whether you’re contemplating a career p.m. Your $40 concierge package includes 2016 Brown & Gold change or interested in developing a new a two-hour domestic draft open bar, buffet Gridiron Club Golf Outing skill set, the weekly Rowan Alumni Career and one ticket to the game. Registration Friday, July 15 Webinar Series has something for you. is open now. Rowan Reunion at Bar A Webinars are free to all alumni and are 5 p.m., Citizen’s Bank Park Saturday, August 13 hosted every Wednesday evening. To learn more, please visit Golden Years Reunion Homecoming 2016 alumnicareerservices.org/rowan. Friday, June 3 Friday, October 7–Sunday, October 9 This reunion, exclusively for graduates 2016 Rowan/GSC Run for Rowan 5k from 1926 through 1966, offers a very Black Alumni Reunion Saturday, April 23 treasured group of alumni the opportunity Friday, October 7–Sunday, October 9 Kick off the spring running season with to return to campus to reminisce with fellow the Alumni Association’s first 5K, a timed classmates for a memorable day. The Rowan Class of 1966 50th Reunion race through campus with all proceeds to University Alumni Association will honor Saturday, October 8

We have many ways to help you stay connected with the Alumni Association: E-mail Social media Each month the Alumni Engagement office sends an Contests, breaking news, event announcements, e-newsletter to catch you up on all things Rowan. We alumni profiles and more. also send e-mails that specifically address the needs Join the conversation with of our alumni—events and programs, networking receptions, reunions, professional development opportunities and more. If you’d like to volunteer as a “digital ambassador” If you’re not receiving Rowan Alumni e-mails, please contact for the Alumni Association, please e-mail Dana [email protected] or visit alumni.rowan.edu/update Benjamin, Alumni Engagement program assistant, to update your information. at [email protected]. Winter 2016 Vol. XX, No. 2

18 features departments 18 Fossils in our future Ken Lacovara ’84 guides serious research and inspires “citizen 2 Mailbox science” with time travel to the Cretaceous period in South Jersey by Barbara Baals 6 Campus News COVER STORY 26 Remembering Henry M. Rowan A fond tribute to the man who changed everything 16 Alumni Advisor by Patricia Quigley ’78, m’03

34 Hope and healing 40 Class Notes With expertise and compassion, Rowan physicians and therapists at the CARES Institute help restore victims of abuse and neglect by Jerry Carey ’77 60 Afterwords

DESIGN ON THE COVER ROWAN MAGAZINE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION Rowan Magazine is published ADVERTISING CONTENT Daniel Murphy M’97 EDITOR PRESIDENT twice yearly by the Office of Rowan Magazine accepts ads All content copyrighted by Henry M. Rowan Steve Pimpinella ’05 Lori Marshall M’92 Tobias Bruhn ’98, M’99 University Publications and is at the editor’s discretion for Rowan Magazine. All rights made higher education Thuy Vo ’10 mailed free to all alumni. goods and services considered ASSOCIATE EDITOR VICE PRESIDENT, COMMUNICATION reserved. fundraising history at VISUAL ASSETS MANAGER of value to alumni. Ad John R. Gillespie ’63, M’69 Angel Aristone ’05 Opinions expressed herein Reproduction by any means in the press conference Karen Holloway M’14 are those of the authors and publication does not constitute NEWS EDITOR VICE PRESIDENT, PROGRAMMING an endorsement of that product whole or in part is prohibited in Bunce Hall’s Tohill OPERATIONS COORDINATOR do not necessarily reflect Patricia Quigley ’78, M’03 Suzanne Smalley Beers ’02 or service. without expressed permission. Theatre in 1992. With Paula Bethea official policy of the Alumni NEWS COORDINATOR VICE PRESIDENT, RECRUITMENT Send inquiries to: Postmaster, please send the breathtaking PRODUCTION ASSISTANTS Association or the University. Steve Levine ’87, M’07 Angelo Pinti ’05 Rowan University address changes to: $100 million pledge Mike DiNapoli ’16 Submissions are welcome Rowan Magazine CONTRIBUTORS DIRECTOR Editor, Rowan Magazine Erin Cahill ’17 including story ideas, photos c o Alumni Engagement announced, the Barbara Baals Chris D’Angelo ’07, M’10 201 Mullica Hill Road / and memorabilia. Publication Rowan University engineer and Rosie Braude ’08, M’09 Glassboro, NJ 08028-1701 ASSISTANT DIRECTOR is at the editor’s discretion. 201 Mullica Hill Road, businessman took Jerry Carey ’77 856-256-4195 Jessica Kanady ‘08, M’15 Submissions may not be Glassboro, NJ 08028-1701. on a title he hadn’t Sharon Clark 856-256-4322 (fax) DESIGN acknowledged or returned [email protected] Please recycle this magazine. considered before: PHOTOGRAPHY Dana Carroll ’14, M’15 without prior arrangement. Craig Terry philanthropist. PROGRAM ASSISTANT Please send to: Dana Benjamin [email protected] or Rowan ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT Magazine, 201 Mullica Hill Joy Kudla Road, Glassboro, NJ 08028

Winter 2016 | 1

A researcher gently brushes away manganese greensand to reveal a fish vertebra and a snail fossil in what was an ancient sea floor, now ground zero for Rowan research and education just a few miles from the University’s main campus.

Fossils in our future

story by Barbara Baals photos by Craig Terry & Bob Hill

Southern , the cradle of , promises generations of discovery to students and scientists and—possibly—answers for the mysteries of the ’ demise—at the Rowan University Fossil Park. Chase Davis was certain he was going to impress his science teacher, Mrs. Hink.

After all, you’re a pretty big deal when you show up to your eighth-grade science class on Monday morning toting a 65-million-year-old fossil. And you just might achieve rock star status when you announce that you found that very fossil—a cervical scute from the back of an ancient crocodile—with your own two hands. Until the 13-year-old’s discovery on a quarry hillside at the Rowan University Fossil Park, no human being had ever touched that crocodile…or its remains. Davis rolled the fossil, about the size of a silver dollar, between his dirt-caked fingers, studying every crevice, marveling at his good fortune. “My science teacher,” the Egg Harbor Township teen said, “is going to freak out.” Though he had the countenance of a veteran paleontologist, Davis was doing a little freaking out of his own. An aspiring professor of paleontology—“I’ve loved dinosaurs quite a lot of my life,” he explained—Davis had waited two years for the chance to dig for fossils at the quarry.

ABOVE: the remnant of the ancient crocodile found by Chase Davis last fall and, left, a rendering of the marine marauder that once thrived in what is now the Rowan University Fossil Park.

RIGHT: a 2015 Community Dig Day drew hundreds to the quarry to become “citizen scientists.”

RENDERING BY EVAN BOUCHER So when he hit pay dirt, the wonders of science— Like researchers at the site since the 1920s, Lacovara of scientific discovery—became real. By digging in marl intermingled his work with the Inversand Company’s with his bare hands at the Fossil Park’s September 4th excavations, as they produced manganese greensand Community Dig Day, by actively pursuing the study for use as a water treatment product. of science, history and the environment, Davis got a “We would go when they would do their mining little bit closer to his dream. operations,” said Lacovara, who grew up in South Jersey It’s a dream Dr. Kenneth Lacovara ’84 understands… and joined Rowan’s faculty in the fall. “We’d pick through and shares. their scraps.” Millimeter by millimeter, Lacovara and his team are DIGGING INTO THE HEYDAY OF THE DINOSAURS meticulously unearthing a thin, six-inch-deep bone bed at The world-renowned paleontologist, famous for the quarry, carefully examining the fossils, the sediments his discovery of the massive plant-eating dinosaur and the geochemistry of the site to gain a clearer picture of schrani, has led research at the 65-acre the period when dinosaurs roamed the . quarry for a decade. The site contains thousands of They’re looking to determine if the fossils represent a beautifully preserved fossils that provide researchers mass die-off of the animals that once lived there. Their with the best window, east of the Mississippi River, into finds have included marine snails, brachiopods, bryozoan the Cretaceous Period—the heyday of the dinosaurs. colonies, shark teeth, boney fish, sea turtles, crocodiles, Mined for nearly 100 years for its manganese green- birds and portions of fearsome marine lizards called sand by the Inversand Company, the 45-foot-deep mosasaurs, which grew to the size of a bus, had paddles for quarry is a former ancient sea floor. limbs, a six-foot jaw and an extra set of backward-facing teeth that ensured any creatures they ate wouldn’t escape.

Winter 2016 | 21 Lacovara’s team is conducting research “When you find a In the past four years, during annual to address the following provocative dig days and scheduled visits by school question: Is the bone bed related to the 65-million-year-old groups, more than 10,000 visitors have mass extinction—an asteroid the size experienced scientific exploration at of —that wiped out the fossil with your the quarry, enjoying what Lacovara 170-million-year reign of the dinosaurs? describes as “the humbling, awe-inspiring “We don’t know yet,” said Lacovara. own hands, it’s a experience of connecting with the Earth’s “But we are testing this hypothesis by deep past.” examining the fossils, the sediments and transformative Thousands of people each year sign up the geochemistry. We do know with for dig days and thousands more, like Chase certainty that we have uncovered a mass experience. Davis and his family, land on a wait list. death assemblage.” Despite the grassroots efforts of Lacovara, Mantua, Gloucester County NEARLY LOST FOREVER You’re never the and a devoted corps of volunteers, and Imagine Lacovara’s worry, when, in 2011, same after that.” despite the public’s overwhelming support Inversand announced that, within months, and interest, the quarry’s future again it would cease operations at the quarry. became uncertain in early 2015. If water isn’t continuously pumped from the site, the quarry That’s when Inversand announced it could no longer continue to would fill up at 57 gallons per minute. The fossils would be lost maintain the property at a loss. The company set December as the forever. Lost, too, would be significant clues about a pivotal official end of its quarry operations. moment in the Earth’s history. “We worked feverishly for years to get things done, knowing “I would have nightmares about how bad it would be to have that Inversand was stretching their resources to keep the quarry water, water—and more water—coming in,” said Lacovara, open,” Lacovara said. “They stopped producing their manganese a former professor. greensand product in November 2012. Recognizing the scientific importance of the quarry, however, “They were losing money each year. They deserve immense credit Inversand pledged to maintain the property through an agreement for their careful stewardship of the property, their concern for the with Mantua Township. Mantua’s Economic Development Office, community and their unwavering support of science.” in turn, worked with Lacovara to promote the site by hosting Once again, however, the clock on the quarry’s future was ticking. community “dig days”—wildly popular events that give community But Rowan President Ali A. Houshmand and the University’s Board members the opportunity to search for fossils in the layers above of Trustees understood the scientific significance—and growth poten- the bone bed alongside Lacovara and his team. tial—of the quarry. They also shared Lacovara’s vision for its future.

22 | Rowan Magazine Fossils found at the quarry include marine snails like the one at left, brachiopods, bryozoan colonies, shark teeth, boney fish, sea turtles, marine crocodiles and mosasaurs.

BECOMING A POWERHOUSE IN PALEONTOLOGY “The school will leverage research and training Houshmand announced in September that the opportunities at the park to become a national University had entered into an agreement with powerhouse in paleontology,” Lacovara said. “The Inversand and Mantua Township to purchase the thousands of fossils collected will form the core of the site for $1.95 million. Settlement was in January. Rowan University Paleontological Collection. Fossils The site will be developed into a world-class, curated at the University will forever remain in the one-of-a-kind center for STEM (Science, Technology, public domain and will be available for study by all Engineering, Mathematics) education. credentialed scientists and students.” Lacovara will oversee research and outreach and The school is expected to educate students interested in the University will work with Mantua Township and a host of fields, including geochemistry, sedimentology, Gloucester County to continue to present educational marine , climate change, sea level science, ground- programming at the park. Those programs are critical in water hydrology, toxicology, ecology and paleontology. igniting kids’ interests in STEM careers, Lacovara said. Recognized for his talent for collaboration on “When you find a 65-million-year-old fossil with initiatives that impact student learning and your own hands, it’s a transformative experience. benefit the South Jersey region education- You’re never the same after that. ally and economically, Houshmand “Fossils hold a special place in the public imagination instantaneously saw the quarry’s and few other topics can compete with their wide appeal immense potential. and ability to create pathways to STEM participation,” “This is an extraordinary he added, noting that studying fossils is “an alluring opportunity for us, one that gateway” to a host of STEM careers focusing on key places us at the forefront of environmental challenges, such as global warming, innovation and scientific water shortages, energy development and discovery,” Houshmand said. environmental remediation. “As a University, we have an In addition to his work directing the fossil park, obligation to preserve this Lacovara is the founding dean of a new School of unique educational treasure, Earth & Environment at Rowan, which will use the site’s right here in our backyard, surrounding ecosystems as a laboratory for for future generations.” hands-on experiential learning. Like Houshmand’s, Houshmand’s vision for Lacovara’s vision for the school is ambitious. future development of the

Thoracosaurus neocesariensis Crocodile vertebra

Cucullea vulgaris False-Angel Clam

 Catapleura repanda Peridonella dichotoma Deep-Sea Turtle Bryozoan

Turritella vertebroides Snail

Winter 2016 | 23 Learn more about the Rowan University Fossil Park:

rowan.edu/fossils Odontaspis cuspidata Sand-Tiger Shark

site includes the establishment of an internationally Other historically important sites can be found in prominent center for science research and education, Sewell, Barnsboro, Mullica Hill and Swedesboro. as well as a home for “citizen science.” But none may be as scientifically significant globally as The move to purchase the site upholds the University’s the Rowan University Fossil Park. Though steeped four pillars—the tenets by which all decisions at Rowan in the ancient past, the quarry’s potential is awe are made. They include improving access, maintaining inspiring, Lacovara said. affordability, providing a quality education and serving “I’m thrilled Rowan has provided a pathway to as an economic engine in South Jersey, he said. preserve it,” he said. A museum, formal and informal learning spaces, laboratories, a nature trail, a dinosaur-themed playground and a visitors’ center are all under “Once the site is developed consideration as the site is developed. it’s going to live on for The park sits a stone’s throw off Route 55 behind Lacovara welcomes a shopping center. Yet, its significance is monumental, centuries. It’s going to quarry guests by as is South Jersey’s place in the field of paleontology. explaining that each In fact, “South Jersey is the cradle of dinosaur become globally known step they take into paleontology,” Lacovara said. the depths of the In 1858, the world’s first discovered dinosaur skeleton, 50-foot vertical and it will impact excavation is a step Hadrosaurus foulkii, was excavated from a marl pit in back in time, ending Haddonfield. Just eight years later, Drypotsaurus— generations. It will do at about 65 million a terrifying predator known as a tyrannosaur—was years ago in the uncovered in what is present-day Ceres Park in Mantua. unimaginable good.” geologic record.

24 | Rowan Magazine It started with cub scouts and sedimentary rocks Across five continents, Dr. Kenneth Lacovara of scholarly journals, including Sci- has built a career as an internationally re- ence and Nature’s Scientific Reports, nowned paleontologist and a gifted commu- and on the front pages of thousands nicator dedicated to scientific discovery— of newspapers and major electronic and to helping the public better understand media outlets around the world, in- life on Earth. cluding The New York Times, the In Argentina, he discovered Dreadnough- Wall Street Journal, National Public tus schrani, a 65-ton plant-eating titanosaur. Radio and the “CBS Evening News.” Announced in 2014 to international acclaim, He also appears frequently in televi- Dreadnoughtus is the best example found sion documentaries. of any of the largest creatures ever to walk He is committed to the discov- the planet. His find involved leading five -ex ery and characterization of extinct peditions to a remote corner of Patagonia, forms of life as he works to con- where he and his team excavated more than tribute to a better understanding 16 tons of fossils. of the Earth—and to articulate that In doing so, the team uncovered, bone by to others through communication bone, the most complete skeleton of its type and teaching. The quarry a few miles from the Glassboro campus ever found. That’s quite a resume for some- offers nearly year-round field work for Lacovara’s team. Deep in the Sahara Desert, in the isolated one who nearly pursued a career as Researchers dig carefully in the greensand to preserve Bahariya Oasis, he was part of the team that a professional drummer. finds like the mosasaur vertebra Lacovara holds. discovered Paralitian stromeri, the first new Lacovara spent a year in college dinosaur discovery in in nearly a century. as a house drummer at the Golden Nugget where he earned a master’s degree in coast- And in , he joined a team that uncov- casino in Atlantic City and, in his 20s, con- al geology in 1986. In 1998, he completed ered Suzhousaurus, a plant eater that resem- sidered that as a career path. his doctorate in geology at the University bled a ground sloth, in the . “As a drummer, you basically started of Delaware. Now, he has come home to Rowan, where with a blank slate every night. I started to Though he is a gifted speaker and a he will use his expertise to educate a new think that I wanted to do something where sought-after media expert, he’s most happy generation of scientists — both through his I could build on it day after day,” said digging with his hands. “I know a lot of first- work as founding dean of the new School Lacovara, who still plays drums at a jazz generation geologists and paleontologists,” of Earth & Environment and as director of club in Philadelphia. said Lacovara, an elected national fellow of the Rowan University Fossil Park. Lacovara But his interest in geology prevailed. the Explorers Club. “Those gritty fields at- joined Rowan on Sept. 1. His passion for the subject dates back to tract students with blue-collar backgrounds. A professor of biodiversity, earth and envi- second grade and a presentation on rocks “I feel sorry for students who are plugged ronmental science at Drexel University for 15 to his Linwood Cub Scout pack. “Following in all the time. There’s something extraordi- years, Lacovara has been featured in a host that presentation, I wrote an essay about nary about working with your hands with a how sedimentary rocks were the best pickax, a hammer and a chisel. As new fos- kind because you could find fossils in sils are revealed, you get to see things no them,” he said. human being has seen before.” The son of a carpenter and a switch- Through the fossil park in Mantua Town- board operator, neither of whom grad- ship and in his teaching, Lacovara is commit- uated from high school because of the ted to the concept of “citizen science”—the onset of World War II, Lacovara got a idea that people need to experience the great start in academia at Glassboro wonder of discovery through hands-on work. State, he said. “I want to show that science isn’t just in a “I didn’t have the option of going to textbook…that the ancient past isn’t just in an expensive private school. Rowan was far-off places,” he said. “It’s right here, being accessible to me. I had professors who discovered by regular people.” PHOTO: BRET HARTMAN / TED PHOTO: were extremely interested in my career Being a Rowan faculty member has other At press time, Lacovara was in and life choices. Coming from where I perks as well for the Swedesboro resident. Vancouver, BC, to present a TED Talk did, Rowan took me as far as I could go.” “This is the first time in my career that I’ve in a lineup including Shonda Rhimes, Lacovara moved on to graduate been able to excavate fossils and be home Adam Savage, Mae Jemison, John school at the University of Maryland, for dinner,” he said. Legend, Linus Torvald and Al Gore.

Winter 2016 | 25 Health (Http://Www.philly.com/Health) — Health & Science (http://www.philly.com/philly/health) Couple give $25 million to Rowan to showcase dinosaur-era fossils Updated: OCTOBER 17, 2016 — 4:03 PM EDT

JESSICA GRIFFIN / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Rowan University announces the donation of $25 million dollars by Ric and Jean Edelman, far right, to build a museum and visitor center at its "fossil park", Monday, Oct. 17, 2016 in Glassboro, New Jersey. by Tom Avril, STAFF WRITER @TomAvril1 (http://twitter.com/TomAvril1)

The husband-and-wife founders of a financial planning firm said Monday that they are donating $25 million to Rowan University, their alma mater, to create a museum, visitor center, and other amenities at a former quarry that is a rich source of fossils (http://www.philly.com/philly/health/20080526_Sedimental_journey.html) from the dinosaur era. SLIDESHOW

(http://25foss-million-to-Roils.html?viewww.philly.com/philly/health/CowwGallean-to-ry=y)showcase-dinosuaple-give-ur-era- Couple give $25 million to Rowan to showcase dinosaur-era fossils (http://www.philly.com/philly/health/Couple-give- 25-million-to-Rowan-to-showcase-dinosaur-era- fossils.html?viewGallery=y)

(http://www.philly.com/philly/infographics/397333751.html) Map: Rowan Fossil Park (http://www.philly.com/philly/infographics/397333751.html)

The gift from Jean and Ric Edelman is the second largest in the New Jersey school's history, after the $100 million gift in 1992 from Henry and Betty Rowan (http://www.philly.com/philly/news/new_jersey/20151211_University_benefactor_Henry_Rowan_dead_at_92.html) that led the school to change its name from Glassboro State College.

The university's 65-acre Fossil Park, in Mantua Township, is a popular site for visiting school groups, who are allowed to dig up fossils under the supervision of Rowan scientists.

The gift will enhance that experience with the museum, laboratory spaces, a nature trail, and a paleontology-theme playground, Ric Edelman said.

"The best way to encourage students to enter science and engineering is to get them excited about it," he said. "You can dig into the dirt yourself and find your own dinosaurs."

Most of the fossils in the quarry are from marine creatures, as that part of New Jersey was underwater back then, but there are the occasional remains of dinosaurs who died and floated out to sea.

A fearsome menagerie of additional species is represented in the muddy pit, including sharks, crocodiles, and mosasaurs, voracious beasts who played a key role (http://www.philly.com/philly/health/20150621_The_real_monster_behind_the__Jurassic_World__beast.html) in the most recent Jurassic Park movie.

Each Friday in the fall and spring, a few hundred schoolchildren come to dig for fossils (http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/20130714_Kevin_Riordan__Glouco_sandpit_could_spread_passion_for_fossils.html) and attend workshops on how fossils are formed, said park director Ken Lacovara, dean of Rowan's school of the earth and environment.

Currently there are 200 schools on a waiting list for that experience, he said. And in September, when Rowan held a public dig day, 2,000 spots filled up in 23 minutes, he said.

"It's like getting Rolling Stones tickets to go to this place," Lacovara said.

Lacovara has found a few old bones himself. He is best known (http://articles.philly.com/2014-09- 06/news/53606274_1_argentinosaurus-kenneth-lacovara-vertebrate-paleontology) for leading a team in Argentina that unearthed Dreadnoughtus schrani, a massive beast that weighed an estimated 65 tons (http://articles.philly.com/2014-09- 07/news/53631592_1_drexel-university-jason-poole-dinosaur).

Rowan president Ali A. Houshmand announced (http://www.philly.com/philly/news/science/20150924_Jersey_s_own__Jurassic_World__site_bought_by_Rowan.html) a year ago that the university was buying the quarry from the Inversand Co., which mined it for a greenish sediment called glauconite, used in water-treatment plants. Some refer to the sandy, clay-like material as marl, which is found elsewhere in South Jersey and lent its name to Marlton.

The $1.95 million sale of the land, located four miles from the university's main campus in Glassboro, became final in January.

The Edelmans were interested in the site even before Houshmand's announcement, after Jean Edelman heard a presentation that Lacovara made to the university's board of trustees, of which she is a member.

"That was a little spark," she said.

The couple then invited Lacovara to the Fairfax, Va., headquarters of their firm, Edelman Financial Services, to speak about the site in greater detail, the scientist said.

The couple, who founded the firm in 1987, have made other science-themed gifts to Rowan. In 2002, they gave $1 million to support the university's planetarium, which now bears their name. In 2006, they established a program to bring elementary schoolchildren to the facility free, and in 2010 they donated $240,000 toward a full-dome digital projection system. Each year, more than 6,000 students in kindergarten through grade 12 visit the planetarium, Rowan officials said.

The Edelman firm has 170 advisers managing $16 billion in assets, according to a fact sheet from Rowan.

Ric Edelman, who grew up in Cherry Hill, earned his bachelor's degree in communications from the school in 1980. His wife, who grew up in West Windsor, N.J., graduated in 1981, majoring in consumer economics and marketing with a minor in nutrition.

With the announcement of the $25 million gift, Lacovara said, Rowan will engage planners and architects to work at the site. He said he hoped facilities would be ready for use in three to four years.

Lacovara said it would operate like a museum, with visitors able to buy individual tickets or memberships. The nature trail and playground would be free.

Ric Edelman said he and his wife did not start out with a goal of donating $25 million for some unspecified purpose. They arrived at that figure after learning what it would take to build the fossil park facilities, he said.

"Our vision is for this to be a world-class destination on a par with the Franklin Institute and the Smithsonian," Edelman said. Among the layers of sediment exposed in the old quarry is one from a particularly interesting period in time: 65 million years ago, when a meteor struck the planet and, many say, triggered a mass dinosaur extinction.

That layer of sediment is restricted to professional scientists (http://articles.philly.com/2008-05-26/news/25262919_1_mine- pit-fossil-hunters-sediment), while visiting schoolchildren are allowed to dig in a slightly more recent fossil layer, Lacovara said.

They typically find fossils of sponges, clams, snails, and shark teeth. Crocodile bones and pieces of turtle shell (http://articles.philly.com/2011-09-21/news/30184889_1_turtle-fossils-meteor) are somewhat less common. The young adventurers usually are allowed to keep what they find, except on the rare occasion when it is from a species that has not previously turned up at the site.

In such cases, the finders should not be disappointed, he said. Quite the contrary. In just a few years, Lacovara said, those fossils will end up in a museum.

One such visitor was Cole Bruner, 15, who lives a few minutes from the site in Mantua Township. A sophomore at Bishop Eustace Preparatory School, he estimated that he had been to the quarry eight or nine times.

Four years ago he found an unusual piece of a turtle's backbone, which he turned over to Lacovara and his team when they expressed interest.

"It's just interesting to have a part of history so close to where I live," said Bruner, son of township economic development coordinator Michelle Bruner. "Especially 65 million years ago."

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Published: October 17, 2016 — 10:58 AM EDT | Updated: October 17, 2016 — 4:03 PM EDT

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