Norman Eckstein ’98

“Montclair State was the best choice for me. The university helped me out through a lot, which is why it is very close to my heart,” says Norman Eckstein ’98. Eckstein graduated in 1998 with a BS in Business Administration, and then went on to pursue his Masters in Public Administration in 2008 from Rutgers University.

While attending Montclair State University, Eckstein served as a student worker for the Economic and Finance Department on campus. He was also part of the Honors Program. “Orientation for my Honors Program was at Dickson Hall, and it was the newest building on campus,” says Eckstein.

Being in the Honors Program provided him with the best faculties he could have asked for. The Honors Program was instrumental for Eckstein to become a student at Montclair State. “I always remembered my first time when I went to the campus with my father, Louis Eckstein, as a high school student. At this time, I attended the Honors Program information session. We need to remember that technology was not that extravagant during these days. That is why interacting with people was critical,” says Eckstein.

Norman’s father passed away because of complications related to Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) when Norman was a sophomore at Montclair State. Scholarships have been established at Montclair State in memory of Norman’s father.

Eckstein recently attended the Honors Program 30th Anniversary Celebration on March 15. Eckstein says his expectations were fully met. His source of motivation to attend the event was his desire to rekindle interactions with professors from this wonderful program. “I look forward in continuing to support such fine academic institution in the future,” says Eckstein.

During Eckstein’s junior year of college, he interned for Clifton City Hall. His internship then led to him having a position in the government. Since then, he has been employed by the municipalities located in Morris and Passaic Counties. In 2001, he became CFO and Tax Collector in Boonton Township.

His passion towards learning and teaching is what brought him to be an adjunct professor at The Feliciano School of Business, something that he currently enjoys. “One of my roles is to provide people with concrete career advice, class suggestions, and to open them up to different ideas,” says Eckstein. As a professor, Eckstein tries to provide career advice to his students and share his personal experiences with them. He believes that Montclair State caters to first-year students and that is very important. After his students graduate, he wants them to be successful and find the jobs they want. “Tell people that they’ll make a difference at the company they work for not the other way around,” says Eckstein.