Leahy and Santelli Named to NJBIZ 2026 Education Power List

Monmouth University President Patrick F. Leahy, Ed.D., and Robert Santelli 73 '14HN, executive director of the Bruce Springsteen Center for American Music, were named to the NJBIZ 2026 Education Power List. This is Leahy's seventh consecutive year on the roster and Santelli's first appearance.

NJBIZ annually identifies members of the higher education field who are acclaimed for their professional accomplishments and public service across the state. The list is intended to highlight individuals who are helping to make New Jersey a better place to live, work, and do business.

According to the list's editors, this year's honorees "represent the brightest lights in New Jersey's educational firmament" at a time when the state grapples with an increasingly difficult business and economic climate. As policymakers respond by promoting sectors like technology, health care, and film production, New Jersey educational institutions are tasked with propelling our workforce forward.

In his NJBIZ profile, Leahy writes that he considers it a personal privilege to establish Monmouth University as a national leader at integrating excellence and access by becoming one of the highest ranked private institutions with our access measures anywhere in the nation.

Leahy acknowledges that moving forward, artificial intelligence will "challenge our fundamental understanding of what it takes to teach students, conduct research, and even manage higher education institutions." During this time of rapid technological expansion and increasing social isolation, Leahy intends to continue leading Monmouth through the guiding principle of being "the kind of person with whom other people want to work."

NJBIZ also highlights Santelli for his work as the founding director of the Bruce Springsteen Center, in addition to previous achievements of producing American music concerts at the White House during the Obama administration and developing educational music programs with First Lady Michelle Obama. In his profile, he shares the career advice that he lives by, which is to "do what you love, be useful, and always express gratitude for the good things that come your way."

The NJBIZ Power Lists are compiled by the NJBIZ editorial staff based on reporting throughout the past year with input from experts in a variety of fields and recommendations from readers.

Learn more information about NJBIZ and explore the rest of this year's Education Power List.