Middlesex County College

Remarks from One of the Founders of Middlesex County College
On October 1, 2009, Frank Deiner, one of the founders of Middlesex County College, was presented with an award from the Middlesex County College Foundation at its Community Celebration. Below are Mr. Deiner’s remarks from that evening.

Thank you for recognition of my role in founding Middlesex County College. This is truly an honor and I am very grateful.

I speak to you tonight on behalf of my colleagues on the Middlesex County Board of Freeholders during the 1960s – George Burton, Jack Fay, Tom Lee, Jack Phillips, George Otlowski and Joe Costa. Sadly, they cannot be here with me tonight as I am the last surviving Freeholder from that time.

I stand before you today, not because of the good fortune of my genes or healthy lifestyle, but because at the age of 33, I was the youngest member of the Board.

It was the energy and idealism of my youth that proved essential in the founding of Middlesex County College – I had to live and breathe it for long hours every day in order to pull it off. I was completely devoted, full time, to the project for an entire year.

I was Chairman of the Freeholder Board's Finance, Administration, and Education Committee. Thus, Middlesex County College fell under my responsibilities as Freeholder. When state legislation authorizing the formation of county colleges was enacted, I immediately launched into action.

On July 2, 1964, I introduced the resolution that created Middlesex County College. It was unanimously approved by the Board of Freeholders. This is the official date of the founding of the College.

The establishment of Middlesex County College had no precedent in New Jersey. There were no other facilities to use as a model. We had no land, no buildings – nothing – we had nothing available to draw upon.

I traveled to California to study and evaluate their county college system, which was considered the best in the country at the time.

I turned to some talented and very bright people for help – most notably, Douglas Powell. Doug was the County Planning Director. He was a Yale graduate with a Master’s degree from MIT. Doug was as enthusiastic about the college as he was brilliant in organizing the details. Doug and I met almost daily to discuss the creation of the college.

We had so much work to accomplish. First of all, we had to find a suitable place to build. We traveled the county to survey various potential sites. The federal government had recently mothballed the Raritan Arsenal in Edison, and it seemed like the perfect location.

The General Services Administration controlled the property. Congressman Ed Patten accompanied me to the GSA Commissioner’s office in Washington, DC. Doug Powell and David Wilentz also attended the meeting.

I made the pitch for the Raritan Arsenal property. Spread out on the floor of the Commissioner’s office was a huge map of the Raritan Arsenal.

The County Planning Board believed 90 acres would be sufficient for the College. But being a brash 33-year-old, I wanted 365 acres. I took out a magic marker and encircled the area on the map. The Commissioner agreed and we won the property.

Ultimately, 185 acres went to the College and the balance of the 365 acres became a county park.

Once we got the land for the college, we faced an avalanche of paperwork. There was an enormous pile of applications that had to be filed with all the appropriate authorities.

We worked with consultants from Princeton, Rutgers, and Farmingdale College. We had to prepare the College’s incorporation, mission statement, and all aspects of financing.

In order to comply with government regulations, we even had to design the college course structure.

In choosing Middlesex County College’s first Board of Trustees, I insisted on seeking the best and most experienced professionals. The Freeholders agreed to not make selections based on politics.

Selected for the Board’s first president was Paige D. L’Hommedieu, President of Johnson & Johnson's Personal Products division and a member of J&J's Board of Directors. Russell Feakes was a V.P. and Chief Financial Officer of J&J. Both had recently retired and could devote their full attention to the College.

Other Board members included two Superintendents of Schools and a state AFL-CIO official. Also on the Board was an African-American woman who was the president of the state Parent Teacher Association, which was a significant appointment in the early 1960s. The Board's legal counsel went on to become Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court.

Once Middlesex County College was established with a governing board of great talent, I let the project go and turned my attention to the development of the County's Vocational and Technical School in East Brunswick. The same kind of energy and passion I spent on creating Middlesex County College was then focused on the vo-tech school.

Middlesex County College has become a premier institution. Over 43,000 people have earned their degrees at the college. I am told that between 750,000 and one million folks have participated in Middlesex County College course offerings.

I am amazed by what has been achieved. The establishment of Middlesex County College is the greatest event in the history of Middlesex County government.

So, in closing, I want to you all to know that while I received degrees from two prestigious universities, my heart and pride lies with Middlesex County College. I consider it my true alma mater.

Middlesex County College - Frank Deiner

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