The first annual Herb M. Iris Award was presented to Seymour "Zoom" Fleisher (Class of `51) at a dinner in the Executive Lounge of Eberhardt Hall on the New Jersey Institute of Technology campus Tuesday night.
The award was presented by NJIT President Robert Altenkirch and by Millicent Iris, widow of the late Herb Iris, who died in April 2006.
President Altenkirch and Mrs. Iris spoke Tuesday night, as did Mr. Fleisher, NJIT Director of Athletics Lenny Kaplan and Charles Hirsh, a close friend of Herb Iris since High School.
The award pays tribute to the late Herb M. Iris (Class of '51, 1930-2006), a great visionary and a major benefactor and supporter of NJIT athletics. Mr. Iris had the longest tenure as chair of the Highlander Athletic Advisory Board and served as national chair of the Highlander Athletics Campaign. The Herb M. Iris Award honors exemplary leadership and support in the advancement of athletics at NJIT.
Seymour "Zoom" Fleisher was a perfect first recipient of the award on several levels. He and Herb Iris, who both graduated from Weequahic High School in Newark, but several years apart, were united at NJIT (then known as Newark College of Engineering), as Fleisher, like so many men from his generation, returned from service in World War II and attended college.
The duo were basketball teammates at NCE, graduating in 1951. After college they both went on to found successful businesses--Iris' business was Iris Construction Company and Fleisher's was Pilot Technologies Corporation.
Both men have been guided by strong philanthropic principles and have given of themselves in civic and community activities. Among those activities have been fund raising on behalf of New Jersey Institute of Technology, including its athletic program.
A member of the NJIT Athletic Hall of Fame, Fleisher and his late wife, Estelle, endowed numerous scholarships and they were recognized with the naming of the "Estelle and Zoom Fleisher Athletic Center" in their honor.
Inducted June 10, 2006
