Seventies Scholarship Recipient Returns the Rutgers Love

An alumnus and first-generation college student who benefitted from financial support when he was a student gives back generously to the university.

Steve Jankoski will never forget the extremely hot 1977 commencement ceremony in New Brunswick when he and his brother, Frank, were the first in their family to receive college degrees.

“I thought ‘Wow! I made it! I graduated from Rutgers University,’” says Jankoski, who studied agricultural economics at Cook College, while Frank studied chemical engineering and business. “It meant so much, not just to me, but to my family. The Jankoski boys both graduated from Rutgers that day and it was an immensely proud moment.”

Jankoski’s love for the university continues almost 50 years since his graduation and is expressed through his philanthropic support of Rutgers Athletics and his enthusiastic fanhood, which includes a vibrant collection of all things Rutgers.

“When I am gone, I hope the university will continue to support students with financial aid so they can succeed as we have,” says Jankoski, who retired six years ago after a career in education and in food sales. Frank owns an environmental company in New Jersey and gives to Rutgers.

“My brother and I lived the American dream,” Jankoski says. “We came from a humble background and were able to receive a college education and become successful because of scholarships and the generosity of others.”

‘I am grateful’

Jankoski grew up in Linden, New Jersey, and attended Roselle Catholic High School. He says he wanted to go to college but could not afford it. When Rutgers offered him financial aid and a scholarship to study agricultural economics, he jumped at the opportunity.

“I got a free ride to Rutgers, and for that I am grateful,” he says. “After graduation, I always felt the responsibility to donate to Rutgers, and now that I have the means, I have funded an endowed scholarship and have included Rutgers in my will.”

As a student, he appreciated the diversity at Rutgers and his exposure to new things. “I went to a 100 percent male and predominantly white high school. When I went to Rutgers, I lived in a coed dorm and met people from different backgrounds. Rutgers exposed me to culture, including musical concerts and plays.”

Jankoski remembers Cook College professors as approachable and available. “The professors really cared about us, and they stressed being a good person, being a good citizen, being a good caretaker of the world . . . and it resonated with me and extended into my work in terms of being approachable, nonjudgmental, and thinking the best of people.”

Jankoski’s support for Rutgers today includes an endowed scholarship for football players. He also recently increased his commitment in his will, sharing that one day he hopes his cumulative giving to Rutgers will reach a million dollars.

“That's been consistent, I just want to give back,” he says. “That is who I am as a person. I was fortunate to go to the university, try to make something of myself, and now I want to lead by example and give back to the university.”

Jankoski hopes this story “opens other people’s eyes who might feel the same way that I do. I support Rutgers University—that is really what I am all about.”

A Super Fan

Jankoski supports every Rutgers team, particularly his beloved Scarlet Knights football team and the Rutgers women’s soccer team. From about 1994-2008, he was an active member of the Rutgers Touchdown Club, serving as club treasurer and secretary and has been a season ticket holder for 30 years.

His “Rutgers shrine” in his home displays a plethora of Rutgers collectibles, including a 3-foot-high Scarlet Knight and a Rutgers clock. “I took over the entire basement,” he says. 

He owns more than 50 Rutgers shirts, as well as Rutgers sweatshirts, pajamas, and flipflops and even wears his favorite Rutgers wide-brimmed hat when he goes trout fishing on the lake behind his house. His wife repurposes his old Rutgers clothing into decorative pillows. 

His two retired Seeing Eye dogs, Vida, a golden retriever, and Oriole, a yellow labrador, sport Rutgers shirts for a big game and sleep in Rutgers dog beds. Jankoski and his wife Connie trained dogs for The Seeing Eye in Morristown for many years before moving to New Hampshire.

The birds near his home have even become Rutgers fans. Since Jankoski can no longer use his Rutgers New Jersey license plates in New Hampshire, he recycled them, building a backyard bird house.

A Garden State Start

A New Jersey native, he retired six years ago to New London, New Hampshire, where he renovated and converted his summer home into his retirement home. 

Looking back, he credits Rutgers for creating his career opportunities. He worked as a sales representative and manager for the General Foods Corporation until he was 39, when he was injured in a serious car accident and was unable to continue in sales. 

“Once again, I went back to Rutgers,” he says.

After earning his teaching certificate at Rutgers, he became a special education teacher at Bridgewater-Raritan High School, where he considered himself the top Rutgers fan. 

Not long after graduating from Rutgers, Jankoski met his wife Connie Andres, a Notre Dame graduate who worked as a chemist, on a blind date at a bowling alley. “I drove her home from the bowling alley, asked her out on a date for Saturday and the rest is history. We have been together 43 years.”

They have a daughter, Vickie, who now lives in Cleveland, Ohio, with her husband Kipp Mayne and son Corbin. As a Rutgers fan, Jankoski is outnumbered because his wife, daughter, and son-in-law all went to Notre Dame. He relished the Rutgers win over Notre Dame in basketball last November.

He looks back with happiness on Rutgers games with Vickie. “I have the fondest memories of taking my daughter to the games,” he says.

On Sept. 19, he plans to return to New Jersey to attend the Rutgers homecoming football game against Iowa and then enjoy his 70th birthday party at his favorite restaurant. The visit will give him the chance to warmheartedly recall past glories, including the football team’s 1976 undefeated season and their win against Colgate, the same year that the Rutgers basketball team made it to the NCAA Men’s Final Four. 

“I have all of these fond memories of sitting in the bleachers and supporting Rutgers as a student,” he says.