Leonard Aaron Cole was born on September 1st, 1933, in New Jersey, USA and died on September 18, 2022. He was a certified dentist, political scientist and expert on bioterrorism as well as terror medicine. He was a professor of political science at Rutgers University-Newark, New Jersey and of emergency medicine at the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School on a supplementary basis in both instances. While he was a pioneer in developing the field of terror medicine, he was subsequently the founding director of the Program on Terror Medicine and Security at the aforementioned medical school. This is a look into who exactly Leonard A. Cole was.
Early Life and Academic Background
Leonard A. Cole was born Leonard Aaron Cohen in Paterson, New Jersey, on September 1, 1933, to his father, Morris Cohen, who was the owner of multiple delis in both New York City and in New Jersey, and his mother, Rebecca, who was a housewife. Leonard A. Cole attended high school in his hometown and changed his surname during his youth due to fears of anti-Semitism and its severe implications at the time.
He initially studied at Indiana University before transferring to the School of Dental Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. After graduating in 1957, he enlisted in the US Air Force and was subsequently posted to Japan for two years. Upon his return from military service, he was employed at a dental office in Berkeley, California, where he obtained an undergraduate degree in political science from the University of California. He then returned to northern Jersey and established his own family dental practice in 1961. He later went on to undertake his postgraduate studies in political science, which earned him the award of a Doctor of Philosophy from Columbia University in 1970. This added to his academic competence and proficiency and would only serve to significantly grow his career in multiple fields as he manoeuvred through his personal, family as well as work life while making his mark in the different fields he was involved in.