Board of Trustees

Elizabeth A. Hill, C.S.J.
President
St. Joseph's College
Brooklyn, New York

S. Elizabeth A. Hill, C.S.J., J.D. has been president of St. Joseph’s College since 1997.

A magna cum laude alumna of St. Joseph’s, S. Elizabeth is a native of Brooklyn. She received an M.A. in History from Columbia University and studied theology and scripture in Rome under the auspices of Gregorian University. S. Elizabeth also received her J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law where she was a Thomas More Scholarship student and president of the Criminal Law Institute. After receiving her J.D., S. Elizabeth spent time as a staff attorney in the Catholic Migration Office in Brooklyn. Prior to being named president at SJC, S. Elizabeth served as executive assistant to St. Joseph’s previous president, S. George Aquin O’Connor from 1980-1997. 

Since her inauguration, S. Elizabeth has been responsible for the building of the state-of-the-art Business and Technology Center on the Long Island Campus as well as launching a comprehensive, capital master plan for the Brooklyn Campus. Under her leadership, enrollment on both campuses has continuously increased and a number of new programs, including an Executive M.B.A., have been introduced. S. Elizabeth also secured the largest grant in the College’s history and the first of its kind from the federal government. 

S. Elizabeth is on the Steering Committee of the Long Island Regional Advisory Council on Higher Education (LIRACHE) and sits on the College of Advisors for ERASE Racism. She is on the Board of Directors of the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities (CICU), Independence Community Foundation, the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, the Fort Greene Strategic Neighborhood Action Partnership (SNAP) and the Brookhaven Board of Ethics. She is also a member of the Board of Trustees of The Mary Louis Academy and Xaverian High School and the Board of Advisors for Saint Saviour High School.

S. Elizabeth has been honored by The Brooklyn Council, Boy Scouts of America at their Women of Achievement Awards Luncheon and by the 88th Police Precinct Community and Youth Council’s Third Annual Dinner Dance for SJC’s tradition of community outreach and efforts to improve the quality of life in Brooklyn. She is also the recipient of the Genesis Excellence in Education Award, was named a Woman Sustaining the American Spirit by State Senator Velmanette Montgomery and a Woman of Distinction by State Senator Caesar Trunzo.

S. Elizabeth was Woman of the Year for the Patchogue/Medford Youth Community Services organization in 2001 and she received the Town of Brookhaven’s Office of Women’s Services award for Outstanding Service to the Community in Education. In 2004, the Long Island Association recognized S. Elizabeth as an Education Advocate for her leadership in workforce development. In 2005, she received the 12th Annual Spirit of Long Island Education Award by Promote Long Island, New York. In 2006, she received the Public Service Award from the Suffolk County Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Commission, Inc., the Community Service Award from the Dorothy Bennett Mercy Center, the Long Island Achievement Award from the American Association of University Women and the Distinguished Service Award from The Advancement for Commerce, Industry and Technology in recognition of her leadership and lifelong dedication to the field of education. In 2007, Temple Beth El in Patchogue named S. Elizabeth Person of the Year for her contributions to the community and the Child Care Council of Suffolk, Inc. honored her for her commitment and dedication to early education and the children and families of Suffolk County.

Most recently, she has received the 2009 Unsung Hero award from the NAACP Long Island Coalition of Branches. S. Elizabeth is a three-time recipient of Long Island Business News’ Top 50 Women award for her consistent record as one of the region’s most important and influential women, making her a Hall of Fame honoree and has also been named on that publication’s Who’s Who in Education list in 2003. 

Additional honors include membership in Sigma Iota Chi (St. Joseph’s College honor society), Kappa Gamma Pi (national honor society) and Delta Epsilon Sigma (national honor society).