TEAM PLAYER

Augustine remembers more than a few second guesses, but he knew he was up for the challenge.

"In hindsight, it was probably the best decision I ever made," he says now of his commitment to the accelerated graduate program.

And, 10 years after graduating with a bachelor's degree in economics and a master's in business administration, Augustine is remembering his alma mater with a gift to the $15 million campaign to refurbish the River Campus athletics complex. When completed in 2000, the men's locker room in the Robert B. Goergen Athletic Center will be named after Augustine in recognition of his gift.

"I always felt that when I was ready to give back to the school, I'd give back to athletics, a part of the University that meant a lot to me," he says.

Since graduation, Augustine has made his career on Wall Street, where he now directs the "distressed debt" unit of the New York financial-services firm of Morgens Waterfall Vintiadis & Co. Inc.

Augustine, who played basketball all four years at Rochester, also has stayed in touch in other ways, including frequent visits with former faculty, and as a regular at alumni basketball games.

Terry Gurnett '77 of Alumni Relations, says Augustine's gift is a tribute to the education Augustine received and to the role Rochester has played in his life.

"Any time you have a young alumnus give at that level, it really says a lot about what the University meant to him and what kind of experience he had here," Gurnett says.

A native of Geneva, N.Y., Augustine had some familiarity with campus when he was looking for a college. His older brother, Joe '86, '87S (MBA), was at Rochester, and also was a member of the basketball team.

"I'd just spent four years as 'Joe's little brother,' and then I went another four years," Augustine jokes. "I pretty much followed in his footsteps, but I have a lot of respect and admiration for him."

Augustine says one of the lessons he learned as a varsity basketball player at Rochester--and that he still relies on--is the importance of teamwork.

"Individuals are not successful in the business world by themselves," Augustine says. "There are no one-man bands out there."

He and his wife, Kim, have a 2-year-old daughter, Alexa.

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