Rutgers Hall of Distinguished Alumni 2025 Inductees Announced

The new class consists of five leaders who have made a difference in myriad ways through the practice of law, pediatric heart surgery, fighting domestic violence and human trafficking, and producing works for the stage and screen.

Five Rutgers University graduates will become the newest members of the Rutgers University Hall of Distinguished Alumni in April.

The new class of inductees selected by the Rutgers University Alumni Association (RUAA) Board of Directors is as follows:

• Judge Esther Salas RC’91, NLAW’94, who holds an undergraduate degree in political science from Rutgers College and a juris doctorate from Rutgers Law School, has been a U.S. District Judge for the District of New Jersey since 2011. She was the first Hispanic woman appointed to that position. Previously, she served as a U.S. Magistrate Judge, becoming the first Hispanic magistrate judge for the District of New Jersey. After her son was murdered at her home in an attack aimed at her in 2020, she turned tragedy into change through her determined advocacy for legislation to enhance security for judges.
• Julie A. Domonkos DC’83, who earned her undergraduate degree in economics at Rutgers Douglass College before going on to law school at New York University, has been a  trailblazer in the fight against domestic violence and human trafficking. She spearheaded efforts in New York to protect survivors of domestic violence, punish abusers, and prevent violence against women. 
• Donald Cameron Clark CLAW’79, who holds a juris doctorate from the Rutgers Law School, has harnessed the arts of persuasion and storytelling to spark emotion, challenge opinions, and change lives. His accomplishments include winning prominent legal cases involving religious liberty and capital punishment, opening a successful live performance magic theater, and producing award-winning films and plays.
• Judge Gregory E. Jackson RC’73, NLAW’78, earned his bachelor’s degree in political science at Rutgers College in New Brunswick and a juris doctor from Rutgers Law School. He went on to work as an attorney at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, an Assistant United States Attorney, and general counsel for the Washington, D.C. Department of Corrections before he was a presidential appointee to the District of Columbia Superior Court in 2004. He served for 20 years, retiring as senior judge.
• Dr. Constantine Mavroudis RC’68, who earned a degree in biological sciences from Rutgers College, has achieved international recognition during his nearly 50-year career in pediatric heart surgery for his expertise in complex congenital heart repairs, coronary artery surgery in children, and other groundbreaking treatments.

“These gifted leaders are preeminent examples of graduates who go above and beyond living out and fulfilling the Rutgers values—achieving academic excellence, building community, and serving the common good,” says Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway. “Excellence takes many forms, and this group has excelled in significant and transformative ways.” 

Rutgers University Foundation President Kimberly A. Hopely says the new class of Hall of Distinguished Alumni is evidence of the value of the education graduates take with them from the university. “Rutgers University is a launching pad for greatness,” Hopely says. “These inductees demonstrate the powerful human endowment that Rutgers creates. These graduates went on from Rutgers to benefit so many.”

Introduced in 1987, the Rutgers Hall of Distinguished Alumni’s first class of inductees included Paul Robeson and two Nobel Prize winners—economist Milton Friedman and scientist Selman Waksman. Since then, more than 200 alumni have been inducted, including five former New Jersey governors, Emmy Award-winning actor Sheryl Lee Ralph, and Carli Lloyd, a professional soccer star who led the U.S. team to two Olympic gold medals. Inductees are selected by the RUAA Board of Directors, which presides over an association of Rutgers alumni worldwide.
 
“With our most recent class of graduates, Rutgers University’s vibrant alumni community has surpassed 600,000 members,” says Gloria Vanderham RC’00, SCILS’00, chair of the RUAA. “To be chosen as one of only five distinguished graduates by the RUAA from this vast and accomplished community is not only an exceptional honor but also a reflection of the rich culture that Rutgers alumni continue to cultivate and the enduring power of the Rutgers connection.”

The five new inductees will be honored and formally welcomed into the Hall of Distinguished Alumni in a ceremony at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 24, at The Palace at Somerset Park, Somerset, New Jersey. For tickets and more information, please visit this page.