Joe ’72 and Gail Berardino: Advancing Community and Scholarship

Joe Berardino ’72 came to Fairfield University for two clear reasons: he was drawn to Jesuit Catholic higher education and the accounting program’s outstanding reputation. “It was a good decision,” he said. “It was a time of growth.”

As a student, Joe didn’t just excel academically—he immersed himself in campus life and leadership. “I learned the discipline of how to think,” he said. “It was a great opportunity to learn how to organize work, lead others, and give back.”

After earning his BS in accounting, Joe built a distinguished career, ultimately becoming chief executive of Andersen Worldwide.

Joe and Gail have been married for 48 years. They raised two daughters in Greenwich, Conn., and now reside in North Palm Beach, Fla. Joe remains professionally active, continuing his career with Alvarez & Marsal in West Palm Beach.

The Berardinos’ service to the University has been extraordinary. In Joe’s 18 years on the Board of Trustees, he chaired the finance and advancement committees, and he was a long-serving member of the executive committee. A supporter of multiple capital campaigns, he has also served on the President’s Roundtable.

Gail has served more than 10 years on the Marion Peckham Egan School of Nursing and Health Studies advisory board, mentoring students and supporting real-world learning. One of the couple’s most meaningful traditions of giving back began when she and Joe started awarding scholarships to two Fairfield Egan juniors to join them on the annual Order of Malta Pilgrimage to Lourdes, France, to assist in caring for the sick. Gail noted that the pilgrimage also offers “an opportunity for the students to reflect on how and where they will use their nursing skills after graduation.”

Such engagement reflects Joe’s philosophy of philanthropy and their shared commitment to Jesuit Catholic values. “We talk about time, talent, and treasure,” said Joe. “We’d like to think we’ve done a little bit of all the above.”

Their giving has been both generous and strategic. The Berardinos have supported the Men’s and Women’s Golf Program, the Walsh Athletic Center, the Fairfield Awards Dinner Scholarship Fund, and the Murphy Center for Ignatian Spirituality—for which Joe chaired the 2018 fundraising dinner. In 2000, they established the Joseph F. ’72 and Gail T. Berardino Scholarship and are longtime members of the President’s Circle and Bellarmine Society.

While serving as president of the Alumni Association in the late 1990s, Joe helped transform the Fairfield Awards Dinner into a signature scholarship event celebrating those who make a meaningful impact on campus.

Joe emphasized that scholarship support sends a clear message to students: “You are important and we’re happy to invest behind you.”

The Berardino’s philanthropy focuses on impact that is deeply personal. Their scholarship endowment fund provides need-based aid to finance and accounting majors in the Charles F. Dolan School of Business. Most recently, they expanded their commitment to include Fairfield Bellarmine students continuing toward a nursing degree.

“Let’s get behind students who want to make a career in finance and accounting, and give them a chance to really be great,” Joe said. “But just as impactful is helping people who want to care for others through nursing.”

For the Berardinos, philanthropy means making thoughtful investments of time, talent, and treasure to help students thrive. “Everyone can find a way to contribute,” Joe noted. “We all have different motivations, experiences, and means. Just pick one.”

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