College recognizes Ostrov for outstanding citizenship

Gerald M. Ostrov (third from left) accepts his award from Middlesex County College President Joann La Perla-Morales (from left), county Freeholder Director David Crabiel, Hank Bauer, College Board Chairwoman Dorothy K. Power and Freeholder Ronald Rios. EAST BRUNSWICK — Businessman, philanthropist and local resident Gerald M. Ostrov has received Middlesex County College's highest honor, the Paige D. L'Hommedieu Outstanding Citizenship Award.

The award was presented at the college's recent Fall Convention by Hank Bauer, a member of the college's board of trustees. Ostrov, a former chairman of that board, was praised for his unselfish devotion and personal idealism, originally exemplified by L'Hommedieu, founding chairman.

"Middlesex County College has been such an important part of my life," Ostrov said upon accepting the award. "Key to this institution are the same principles that apply to business: Offer long-term solutions to empower people to create value for themselves and then re-create value to others. I am deeply proud that we at the college have been enabling people to improve their lives for more than 40 years."

A 28-year employee of Johnson & Johnson, Ostrov rose to become company group chairman of Worldwide Vision Care in 1998, retiring from J&J in 2006. In his 30-year career in the ophthalmic and consumer marketing field, he has become an international authority on eye and vision care.

In January, Ostrov was named chairman and chief executive officer at the Rochester, N.Y., headquarters of Bausch & Lomb. He is also a founding board member of NuLens Limited of Israel, developer of intra-ocular lenses.

While company group chairman at Johnson & Johnson, Ostrov served Middlesex County College for more than 14 years — as trustee and then chairman of the board, and as a board member of the Middlesex County College Foundation. Under his leadership, corporate support of the nursing program, as well as health technologies scholarships, increased annually.

According to the college, he provided significant strength in developing the new Joint Middlesex County College- Raritan Bay Medical Center Nursing Program, which allows for expansion and increased enrollment. He also served as co-chairman of the foundation's recently completed Community Investment Campaign, where the original $3 million goal was exceeded by more than $555,000.

The L'Hommedieu award was created in honor of the college board's founding chairman, who was also a corporate leader at Johnson & Johnson and served the college from 1964-72.

"It is an unbelievable honor to receive an award in Paige L'Hommedieu's name," Ostrov said. "J&J is a part of Middlesex County College's beginnings, and I am proud to continue that tradition."

Ostrov is a strong participant in leadership roles in the Jewish community and in social service organizations and educational causes. He has raised significant funds for Hadassah, the international medical and service organization, both in the United States and in Israel, and is vice president of the National Committee of Hadassah Association.

A graduate of Cornell University and the Harvard Graduate School of Business, Ostrov serves on many boards and committees of these universities.

He and his wife Aimee live in East Brunswick, and are the parents of two adult children and the grandparents of twins.