Two Industry Visionaries Awarded Highest Honor by the American College

In recognition of their outstanding contributions to their alma mater and the financial services industry, The American College (www.TheAmericanCollege.edu) recently presented Gloria La Grassa, CLU®, ChFC®, former president of the New York City Chapter of Financial Service Professionals, and Richard Liddy, CLU®, retired Chairman of the Board of GenAmerica Financial Corporation, with their highest honor -- the Huebner Gold Medal. The longtime friends and supporters of the nation's leading educator of financial service professionals were honored during the 2009 Knowledge Summit at the President's Circle Dinner, a black-tie affair that took place at the JFK Presidential Museum and Library in Boston.

"Gloria and Dick personify the highest ideals of our founder Dr. Solomon Huebner," said Larry Barton, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of The American College. "Their forward thinking and continued support has kept our organization on the forefront of financial education. They are extremely deserving of this honor."

The Huebner Gold Medal has been awarded annually since 1975 and honors the special individuals whose support of The American College and its programs and whose dedication to education and professionalism have been of particular meaning to the mission and progress of the institution. Huebner Gold Medal recipients are recognized annually at the President's Circle Dinner amid some of The American College's most dedicated supporters.

The Huebner Gold Medal is a crowning achievement for both La Grassa and Liddy, highlighting two fruitful careers dedicated to philanthropy.

La Grassa is a graduate of Brooklyn College, where she earned both her Bachelor's and Master's degrees. She began her career working alongside Charles Lamont Post, an early benefactor of The College and the man responsible for creating and endowing The College's first chair concentrating on the study of ethics. Over the next 25 years, La Grassa rose to the position of Principal at Post & Kurtz.

She is the former president of the New York City Chapter of Financial Service Professionals. In 1979, La Grassa earned the prestigious Chartered Life Underwriter® (CLU®) designation and in 1985, she received the highest standard of knowledge and trust, the Chartered Financial Consultant® (ChFC®) designation. Both of these credentials are offered exclusively by The American College.

At The American College, La Grassa faithfully served on both the Board of Trustees and the Foundation Board of Directors. She was a member of the Board of Trustees for seven years, serving five of them as Secretary of the Board. She was a member of the Foundation Board of Directors for nine years, also serving five of them as Secretary. In 2002, La Grassa served on the Presidential Search Committee.

In 1999, La Grassa gave $600,000 to The College to fund a state-of-the-art auditorium. To this date, this gift stands as the largest single donation ever made to The College by a woman.

Richard A. Liddy is a graduate of Iowa State University. He began his career in insurance in Connecticut at Connecticut General, now known as CIGNA.

In 1982, Liddy moved to New York to take the position of Executive Vice President at Continental Insurance and President of their worldwide Financial Services Group.

Liddy moved to General American Life Insurance Company in 1988, where he became the organization's President and Chief Operating Officer. He was named Chief Executive Officer of General American in 1992 and Chairman of the Board in 1995. He retired from General American in 2000, continuing to serve as Chairman until 2002.

Liddy has been actively involved in The American College since earning his Chartered Life Underwriter® (CLU®) designation in 1968. He was a member of The College's Board of Trustees from 1998 to 2003 and has served on their Foundation Board of Directors since 2003.

Mr. Liddy created The American College's Richard A. Liddy Lecture Series, an annual lecture delivered by a top thought leader in the financial services industry.

Along with his role in creating a lecture dedicated to thought provoking, essential information for financial professionals, Liddy was instrumental in shaping and endowing the George G. Joseph/Richard A. Liddy Chair in Practice Management. The chair affirms The College's commitment to professional management education and is dedicated to designing and implementing courses in management, shaping continuing education courses and producing top academic research.

Liddy's past professional activities include former Director of the Life Insurance Marketing Research Association (LIMRA) and Director of the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI).

Aside from his extensive work with The American College, Liddy is involved with numerous organizations in St. Louis. He has served on the Board of Webster University, Civic Progress, the Missouri Historical Society, United Way, the St. Louis Art Museum, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, Energizer, Brown Group, Inc., Ralston Purina, Ralcorp and Ameren Corporation.

La Grassa and Liddy will have their names added to the Huebner Gold Medal Recognition Wall located on The College's campus in Bryn Mawr, PA. The wall includes the names of every medal recipient since the award's inception.

The American College is dedicated to leadership in innovative training and development that helps financial services companies and their employees succeed. As a non-profit educational institution holding the highest level of academic accreditation, The College has served as a valued business partner to banks, brokerage firms, insurance companies and others for over 82 years. The American College's faculty represents some of the financial services industry's foremost thought leaders. For more information, visit www.TheAmericanCollege.edu.