CLARK, N.J. (May 14, 2009) – On Tuesday night at the annual Collegiate Basketball Officials Association (CBOA) awards dinner, Stevens Institute of Technology Head Men's Basketball Coach Bobby Hurley was presented the 2008-09 Schoenfeld Award for the Metro/New Jersey Region. The award is presented to the college or university, which in the judgment of the CBOA membership, best exemplifies "the highest degree of sportsmanship, character, and ethics among their players, coaches and spectators."
Sam Schoenfeld was a former college basketball great who possessed a great deal of energy, honesty and had a wonderful personality. He was one of the CBOA's founding fathers. Sam espoused integrity and strong character, which set him apart from most men. A brief illness took Sam's life in early 1956 and as a result CBOA decided to memorialize Sam through an award that would be annually presented to a person who exemplified the principles and characteristics so prominently displayed by Sam Schoenfeld. This is the highest honor that CBOA annually bestows on any collegiate institution.
Stevens received the Metro-Region award after the 2002-03 basketball season and was the overall award winner in 1968-69 when John Lyon was the coach of the team. Stevens, a member of the Empire 8, abides by the conference’s code of conduct as a basketball team and athletic department in each and every contest it takes part in throughout the season.
The Collegiate Basketball Officials Association, Inc., now in its 53rd year was formally organized on June 8, 1948, with 37 charter members. The organization was an outgrowth of informal discussion among leading officials who envisioned such a need. The greatest impetus came from five men - Sam Schoenfeld, Hagen Andersen, Matty Begovich, John Nucatola and Lou Eisenstein. These men, motivated by a desire to further intercollegiate basketball and to improve basketball officiating, conducted informal meetings with the then Collegiate Basketball Officials Bureau (now Eastern College Men's Basketball Association), leading to the formation of CBOA. New officials have been added annually until today there are over 700 members in all divisions residing in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia.
