A Word from the President - Villanova University

Carl Riccio ’08 VSB has never backed
down from a challenge. As a high school
athlete, he was a national caliber baseball
player and county wrestling champ,
sought after by college recruiters. When
his life changed in a single moment at
age 17, he continued to set the bar high
for himself. He enters law school in the
fall, with an eye on a career in politics.
Alisha Welch ’08 A&S is equally determined to
make her mark on the world — by making it more
accessible for people with disabilities. Described as
“tough as nails” she, too, is heading to law school
this fall and plans to become a legal advocate for
the disabled. “There is no reason why every person
shouldn’t have access to any store, restaurant or
historic site they want to visit,” she declared.
When interviewed the week before graduation,
Carl and Alisha were full of plans — to attend
Senior Week events, look for apartments and more.
These rites of passage might be more physically
challenging for them than for your average
22-year-old — but then, Carl and Alisha are
anything but average.
Paola NogueraS (ALL)
Carl: He’s All
About Hope
It’s not difficult to imagine Carl one day
on the campaign trail. With his smile
and sense of humor, he puts everyone
around him at ease. He’s been a public
speaker since the age of 17, and was one of
the few college students in the country
who could always count on a governor
returning his phone call.
He has a gift for finance — he enjoys
playing the stock market with his own
money — and an interest in business that
stems from summers working at his father’s
pharmacy. He has shared what his former
high school teacher Gene McAteer calls
his “sincere and passionate approach to
life” with audiences throughout his home
state of New Jersey.
“Seeing how focused Carl is on his
goals and the example he sets for others is
inspirational,” said McAteer, who invited
Carl to be a motivational guest speaker at
a youth basketball camp.
“This is a kid who had to carry a
200-pound weight on his back every day,
and go to college on top of it,” said
Stephen McWilliams, Villanova’s director
of International Students and Human
Services. “Yet Carl has such patience with
life, and he’s all about hope. He takes
everything in stride.”
Carl had wanted to attend Villanova
since his junior year of high school. His
brother, Peter Riccio ’05 VSB, was a member
of the Villanova baseball team, and
Carl stayed with him. “I had a great time,
and really liked the campus,” he recalls.
Carl himself was a standout baseball
player, and all of the Riccio kids—Kerry,
Peter, Carl, Shane and Tyler — are exceptional
athletes. “Sports were a huge part of
my life from ever since I could remember,”
Carl said.
The Warren, N.J., native also excelled
at wrestling. In his junior year he was
undefeated and considered a strong contender
for a state title.
During one of the last meets before the
state championships, his scheduled opponent
couldn’t “make weight.” Carl could
have accepted an automatic forfeit, but
that wasn’t — and isn’t — in his nature.
“I wanted to prepare for the state tournament,
and I wanted a competitive match,”
he remembered. So he moved up a weight
class and took on the same opponent.
During the match, Carl suffered a severe
spinal cord injury. In the weeks that followed,
as their community rallied around
them, Carl and his family learned that the
accident had left him a quadriplegic.
“Obviously, my dreams of playing
professional sports weren’t going to happen
anymore,” Carl said calmly. “I had
good grades before I got hurt, but [afterwards],
I think I concentrated even more
on my schoolwork and knew it was something
I was going to have to do to be
successful in life.”
Carl Riccio ’08 VSB has a gift for finance and enjoyed playing the stock market with his own
funds, while earning grades that earned him a spot in law school this fall.
Summer 2008