Jack Nicholas Arbolino

ARBOLINO-Jack Nicholas, a pioneer in the field of adult education, died of natural causes on January 7th. He was 85 years old. A longtime resident of Harrington Park, New Jersey, he was born on January 12th, 1919 in New York City. He grew up in the Woodlawn section of the Bronx and graduated from the Horace Mann School in 1938. He graduated from Columbia College in 1942 with a degree in English literature where he played varsity football and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He received his Master's degree in English literature from Columbia University in 1957. In World War II he served with the marines in the Pacific theater. He was commissioned in September of 1942 at Quantico, Virginia. He fought as a Platoon Leader at Tarawa and later as a Company Executive Officer at Saipan where on July 3, 1944, he was wounded and awarded the Purple Heart. In January 1945 after recovery, he was assigned to the Chief Instructor's Section of the Marine Corps Schools in Quantico, Virginia. In March 1945 he was assigned to duty at Naval Science and Tactics, Yale University, for 15 months of instruction in Japanese Language. He was appointed Captain in March 1945. In September of 1946 he was relieved from active duty. In September of 1951 he was promoted to Major. After the war he returned to Columbia University and worked at the School of General Studies from 1946 to 1958. He was the Associate Dean and a lecturer in English literature. In 1958 he left Columbia to join the College Entrance Examination Board in New York City, where he worked until his retirement in 1987. He was appointed the first permanent Director of the Advanced Placement Program, a position he held until 1964. He was the founding Director of the CollegeLevel Examination Program and was later appointed as the Executive Director of the Council on College-Level Examinations. In 1977 he became the Editor of the College Board Review, a position he held until 1987. He was the co-author of ``The History of Columbia College on Morningside'', published in 1954, and also was the co-author of ``College Learning, Anytime, Anywhere'', published in 1977. He wrote fiction for The New Yorker magazine and was a frequent contributor to Columbia College Today. He was a member of the Board of Education of the Harrington Park Elementary School and a Trustee of the Northern Valley Regional High School in New Jersey. He was a member of the Columbia College Council, a recipient of the Dean's Award for ``Outstanding Service to the College'' and was the Chairman of the Columbia Alumni Trustee Nominating Committee. He testified before the United States Senate Committee on Labor and Public Welfare in October of 1963. He served as a panelist and participant in President Lyndon Johnson's White House Conference on Education in August of 1965. He was a member of the American Association of Junior Colleges Advisory Council on extending educational opportunities for servicemen. Also, he served on the Steering Committee of the U.S. Navy Campus for Achievement as well as the Advisory Board on Regents External Degrees of the University of the State of New York. He was co-host of the television series entitled The FBI: Issues and Responsibilities on WABC-TV. A lifelong proponent of the study of liberal arts, he coined the oft-quoted phrase on the value of a college education: ``It's so that later in life when you knock on yourself, somebody answers.'' He is predeceased by his two wives, the former Louise Gilmour, in 1946, and the former Eileen Margaret Snider, in 2001. He is survived by his four children: Philip, of Bedford, New York; Jennifer, of Chicago, Illinois; Anne, of Harrington Park, New Jersey; and John, of Katonah, New York, and five grandchildren. A memorial service is planned for March at St. Paul's Chapel at Columbia University, the date to be announced.