Hermosa Beach Mayor Pro Tempore Wins Clarkson Alumni Award

Hermosa Beach Mayor Pro Tempore Michael DiVirgilio received the Woodstock Award from his alma mater, Clarkson University. 

The Woodstock Award honors young alumni who have demonstrated outstanding loyalty and service to Clarkson’s alumni association and who have used their college experience to make a notable contribution to their careers, according to a news release from the school.

DiVirgilio was selected in part thanks to his achievements as an elected official, which began in 2007 when he won a seat on Hermosa Beach City Council.

The news release sites some of those achievements, including how he helped lead the city to its commitment to become carbon neutral, making Hermosa Beach one of only a handful of communities nationwide to do so and the first in Southern California. 

Now in his second term, he also helped end a 15-year-old lawsuit against the city that carried a potential judgment of 25 times the city’s annual revenue. He did so by working to negotiate a settlement that reduced the potential cost per household from $105,000 to less than $3,000, required no upfront settlement monies, and includes the community in the final decision making, according to the news release.

DiVirgilio received his bachelors of science degree in mechanical engineering from Clarkson University in 1993. While at Clarkson, he took on a number of leadership roles, including: Phalanx honorary society president; resident director of Ross-Brooks dormitory; resident advisor of Brooks II and Reynolds I; treasurer of the Sigma Chi fraternity; class vice president. He also won the Phalanx Commendable Leadership Award, founded Clarkson’s Safe Spring Break Week, and helped launch the freshman Wellness Program. In 2005, he returned to provide the keynote remarks for University Recognition Day.

After a decade of engineering work with electronic companies and software start-ups, DiVirgilio entered the world of public service ultimately working as a senior staffer for longtime U.S. Congresswoman Jane Harman’s district director. He now runs his own strategy and public affairs practice, where he advises individuals and organizations such as Fortune 100 firms like Simon Property Group. 

Originally from Clifton Park, N.Y., DiVirgilio and his wife, Danay, live in Hermosa Beachwith their daughter, Amanda.