Student Success

 Richard Bucci – 1972

When Richard Bucci departed Binghamton’s Catholic Central High School for St. Bonaventure University in 1972, his aim was to become a social studies teacher. He ventured into politics instead, but then his career went full circle when he became principal of his alma mater, Seton Catholic Central. “It’s was kind of surreal being the principal of a high school you went to,” Bucci said with a laugh. “I don’t how many others there are, but there can’t be many of us.” There are even fewer who have had a distinguished career in state and local government, including service as a legislative aide in Albany and three, four-year terms as mayor of his hometown. Bucci prefers to leave the politics to others these days, but said he would provide counsel to (current Mayor Rich) David when asked – just as he did with Binghamton’s previous mayor, Matthew T. Ryan.

After leaving the mayor’s office, Bucci went back to his education roots and looked for work in the local school districts. There was an opening for director of curriculum development at the Vestal Central School District. He filled that role for nearly six years before the job at Seton opened. His plate was full because in addition to serving as principal, he also served as the leader of the Broome County Catholic Schools, which now consists of three K-6 elementary schools and grades 7-12 at the high school on Seminary Avenue.

After decades of closures and mergers among the local Catholic schools, Bucci said the commitment to the four school system is firm
and has produced some positive results. He said a decision years ago to move the seventh and eighth grades to the high school had a positive impact on the students, and the school and reduced the rate of students leaving the system and switching to public schools after
eighth grade. Stabilizing the elementary schools, meanwhile, eliminated much of the concern that caused some parents to shy away
from starting their children in a school with an uncertain future. Bucci said that’s important because Catholic educators understand the
viability of the elementary schools will determine the future of the high school.

Bucci noted that while the scale is different, there are similarities between running a city and leading a school district. “One of the
biggest is financial viability,” he said. “There’s also the sense in both of constituent services, being conscious of your stakeholders and trying to keep them informed and being accessible to them – that’s important regardless of where you are.”

———-
RICHARD A. BUCCI
Age: 60
Wife: Sue
Children: Daughters Caroline and Liz; son Peter.
Education: B.A. from St. Bonaventure (1976), Masters in Education from University of Scranton (1979), Certificate of Advanced Study from SUNY Cortland (2006).
Leadership philosophy: “I think you have to articulate a vision of where you are and where you want to go, and be committed to that vision. You have to show that you want to be an agent of change for the better.”

Excerpted with permission and thanks from the Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin, May 7, 2014

Robert Olsen – 2014

Robert Olsen graduated in June 2014 following four years of studies at Seton Catholic Central high School. Robert’s education included eight years of primary education in the Catholic Schools of Broome County before coming to Seton Catholic. Robert graduated with honors and a NY State Regents diploma. During his time at Seton Catholic, he distinguished himself academically achieving a 93% grade average, was a regular member of the scholastic honor roll and gained membership in the National Honor Society. Athletics played a large part in Robert’s career at Seton. This offered him an outlet to excel on the field and court and offered him a means to manage his time to accomplish his scholastic and athletic goals. He played 3 sports, football, basketball and baseball all four years in high school, playing three of those years at the varsity level. He was captain of the football and baseball teams his senior year. As a senior, he led the football team to their first winning season in thirteen years. His baseball team was one of the top four in New York State in 2014.

Community service was another component of Robert’s time at Seton. Annually, volunteer projects were coordinated with sports teams that benefited Samaritan House and CHOW. In June 2013, Robert traveled to Haiti with two other Seton classmates for a week long mission to work with the island’s children. Robert attended The Citadel, Charleston South Carolina. He graduated in 2018 with a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering and a commission as a second lieutenant in the United States Marine Corp.

Brian West – 1987

Brian J. West is Chief Operating Officer for Nielsen. He was appointed to this role in March 2014 and holds responsibility for a wide-range of services; including global operations, technology, product engineering, statistical methodologies, and retail measurement services, product leadership, business process reengineering, IT infrastructure, and sourcing across Nielsen businesses and functions. Prior to joining Nielsen in 2007, Brian served as Chief Financial Officer for the company, where he held responsibility for all financial functions and strategies, and was integral in company’s transformation from private to public in 2011. Before Nielsen, Brian spent sixteen years at General Electric (GE), where he held finance roles in Plastics, Aviation, and NBC Universal. He began his GE career as part of the Financial Management Program (FMP) in 1991. Brian is a graduate of Siena College and holds a Masters of Business Administration from Columbia University.