The 2005 Awardees

Paul C. Besozzi

BSFS 1969, JD 1972
Washington, DC

Paul Besozzi, a Washington based attorney and former president of the Georgetown University Alumni Association, received the John Carroll Award in ceremonies held at the Chicago Hilton & Towers on April 16, 2005.

Besozzi received Phi Beta Kappa honors as a graduate of the School of Foreign Service in 1969, followed by his law degree in 1972, where he was editor of the Georgetown Law Journal.

After pursuing an MBA from George Washington University, Besozzi served as general counsel to the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee and is currently a partner at the Washington law firm of Patton & Boggs, specializing in telecommunications law.

Besozzi has been an active member of the Board of Governors of the Georgetown University Alumni Association for over 20 years, taking a leading role in expanding the communications reach of the Association at the emergence of the Internet era. He served from 2008 to 2010 as president of the Alumni Association, and was a past recipient of the Association's William Gaston Award in 2001.

Edward J. McManimon III
(1946-2024)

AB 1968, JD 1971
Washington, DC

Edward J. ("Ed") McManimon, a Roseland, NJ based attorney, received the John Carroll Award in ceremonies held at the Chicago Hilton & Towers on April 16, 2005.

A government major from Trenton NJ, McManimon received his AB degree in 1968, and continued with a law degree in 1971. Following law school, he joined the firm of Kraft & Hughes, and became a partner in 1977. In 1987, McManimon helped found what is today known as the firm of McManimon, Scotland & Baumann, where he specializes in municipal securities law.

According to his firm's biography, "He was honored by the New Jersey Law Journal as one of the recipients of the Inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award. He is a member of the Local Government Law Section of the New Jersey Bar Association and has been a member of the Institute of Municipal Attorneys and serves as special counsel to the League of Municipalities in connection with public finance and redevelopment matters. He has been a frequent lecturer on the law of municipal finance, including debt management courses and programs on behalf of the New Jersey League of Municipalities, the New Jersey Authorities Association, the New Jersey Government Finance Officers Association, the Association of County Finance Officers, the New Jersey Association of Counties, the New Jersey Clerks Association and the New Jersey Institute for Professional Development." In 2014, McManimon received a lifetime achievement award from the New Jersey Law Journal.

The former chairman of the Class of 1968 annual giving and reunion efforts, Ed McManimon died in February 2024 at the age of 77.

Kevin J. Moynihan

AB 1971
New York, NY

Kevin J. Moynihan, former managing director at Merrill Lynch and Co., received the John Carroll Award in ceremonies held at the Chicago Hilton & Towers on April 16, 2005.

A 1971 graduate of the College, Moynihan entered corporate law after receiving his law degree from Boston College in 1974. He joined Merrill Lynch in 1991 following work as an attorney for the Securities & Exchange Commission, general counsel for a regional brokerage firm, and general counsel for Paribas North America.

He joined Merrill Lynch in 1991, having previously served as an attorney with the SEC in Washington (1974-77), associate general counsel with investment bank A.G. Becker/Warburg Paribas Becker Inc. (1977-83), general counsel with regional brokerage firm, Moseley, Hallgarten, Estabrook & Weeden, Inc. (1983-88), and general counsel with investment bank, Paribas North America, Inc. (1988-91).

Moynihan retired from Merrill Lynch in 2009, and currently serves on the town council of New Canaan, CT.

James J. O'Connor
(1937-2023)

JD 1963
Chicago, IL

James ("Jim") O'Connor, the retired CEO of Chicago's Commonwealth Edison, received the John Carroll Award in ceremonies held at the Chicago Hilton & Towers on April 16, 2005.

A 1958 graduate of Holy Cross, O'Connor enrolled at Georgetown Law School in 1960 following an MBA from Harvard. Following Georgetown, he began a 35 year career with Commonwealth Edison, serving as a vice president, executive vice president, president, and finally, its chairman and chief executive officer from 1980 through 1998. From 1994 through 1998, he served as chairman of Unicom Corporation, which served as Commonwealth Edison's holding company before a merger which created Exelon Corporation in 2000.

A board member at many local corporations such as the Chicago Board of Trade, Tribune Company, United Air Lines, The Field Museum, Chicago Urban League, the Chicago Symphony, and Northwestern University, O'Connor co-founded the Big Shoulders Fund, a non-profit organization for inner-city Catholic schools in Chicago which helped raised over $600 million in support of education since 1986.

James O'Connor died in July 2023 at the age of 86.

Marcia A. Wiss

BSFS 1969, JD 1972
Washington, DC

Marcia Wiss, a Washington based attorney, received the John Carroll Award in ceremonies held at the Chicago Hilton & Towers on April 16, 2005.

A 1969 graduate of the School of Foreign Service and a 1972 graduate of the Law Center Wiss served as assistant general counsel for the Overseas Private Investment Corporation. A retired partner at the Washington law firm of Hogan & Hartson, Marcia is an experienced international attorney, with over 35 years experience in global finance and emerging markets.

According to an online biography, "she has taught a course on international project finance and investment at Georgetown University Law Center for the past thirty years, and teaches a class on international investment law at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. She served as vice president of the American Society of International Law, president of the Washington Foreign Law Society and received the annual community service award from the International Section of the DC Bar Association. She has received the Charles Fahy Award Distinguished Adjunct Professor Award from Georgetown University Law Center."

Wiss served two separate terms on the Board of Governors of the Georgetown University Alumni Association between 1995 and 2009.