MHS Junior Named One of the Bentley College Tomorrow25

In First Cohort to Be Honored by Bentley College and Time Magazine

by Judy Silberstein

(April 27, 2005) Alexander Cowen, a junior at Mamaroneck High School, was surprised to learn a few months ago that he had been nominated for a new national award launched by Bentley College, the business university in Waltham Massachusetts.

On April 8, he was delighted to hear he was named one of the Bentley College Tomorrow25 and is one of 25 students chosen from over 300 international nominations as “exemplary leaders of tomorrow.”

On April 27, Bentley College issued a press release sharing the news that the Mamaroneck resident “will receive national recognition and interact with high-profile leaders at the inaugural Bentley Leadership Forum in cooperation with Time magazine on May 10.“ The Tomorrow25 students will also appear in a national ad in Time magazine following the forum.

“The award is a very good thing to show people in high school that there are no barriers to enter business and become better business leaders,” said Alex Cowen in a phone conversation with the Gazette.

A member of the MHS chapter of the Future Business Leaders of America, Alex has already started two businesses, a website development firm and a dessert catering company. He is currently working on two websites, one for a local chiropractor and another for a ceramicist. He also has created a site for his FBLA chapter, which won an FBLA award for outstanding design. For his baking business, AC Desserts, he and his partner, Mary Arcadapaine, do all the baking. “Our most popular dessert is our cheesecake,” he reported.

“I plan to pursue business as a field of study in college or graduate school,” he said. In fact, Bentley is one of the schools he is considering as he starts searching for a college. Further down the road, he plans a career in business, though he is not ready to nail down a specific enterprise.

His business interests and activities certainly entered into his nomination and selection, but so did a number of other aspects of his resume.

According to the Bentley release, “Cowen, a junior at Mamaroneck Senior High School, impressed the Tomorrow25 advisory board with his intelligence, technology skills and compassion.” He has won a number of awards, contributed articles to local news media (including the Larchmont Gazette), and served as a district parliamentarian for the FBLA. His ceramic artwork was displayed at the Norwalk Maritime Museum and he is taking part in the original science research program at the high school, conducting studies with guidance from a University of Illinois mentor.

“Bentley is committed to developing and celebrating leaders of tomorrow and Alex demonstrates what we’re looking for in the Tomorrow25: initiative, citizenship, intelligence, technological savvy, cultural awareness and social responsibility,” said Jeff Wright, chairman of the Tomorrow25 committee at Bentley. “Alex also has a passion for the real world of people and organizations, and a commitment to making positive things happen in his community.”

On May 10, Alex and the other 24 winners will be honored at the Bentley Leadership Forum to be held at the Waltham campus. Bentley will be bringing together “leaders from the worlds of business, technology, arts and entertainment, and philanthropy to explore how social responsibility can be profitable in today’s business environment. Norman Pearlstine, Editor-in-Chief of TIME, will be the keynote speaker,” according to the release.

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