Vittorio (“Vic”) Bonomo, associate professor of finance, 80, died on April 20 in Blacksburg.

Bonomo, a native of New Brighton, Pennsylvania, joined Virginia Tech in 1968, where he taught for 48 years.  He received his bachelor’s degree in economics from Duquesne University in 1962 and his Ph.D. in economics from Brown University in 1969.

He began his teaching career at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

At Virginia Tech’s Pamplin College of Business, Bonomo received the William E. Wine Award for Teaching Excellence in 1993. The many undergraduate and graduate courses  that he taught included real estate finance, investments, financial institutions, and international finance. He gave talks at various universities and colleges under the National Science Foundation’s visiting scholars program.

Bonomo’s research interests included the efficiency, management, and regulation of financial institutions; monetary theory and the operation of financial markets; and the role of banks and academic institutions in fostering financial and economic development. His research was published by leading journals, including the American Economic Review, Journal of Finance, Journal of Political Economics, and Review of Economics and Statistics.

A financial advisor for two Virginia governors and member of advisory boards for many banks and financial institutions, Bonomo testified before commissions and legislative committees on matters related to the regulation of banking, taxation and economic policy, the savings and loan industry, and antitrust policies. He served as chairman of the board of directors and research director of the National Association of Corporate Treasurers.

Bonomo had long been a mainstay of the finance department, department head Vijay Singal said. “Vic loved to teach. He shared not only his broad academic knowledge but also his real-world experiences with his students. Real estate finance was an area he knew well, and, in his teaching, he drew from his own life and business dealings.”

Referring to Bonomo’s battle with cancer during the past several months, Singal said Bonomo had told him on several occasions that “he was looking forward to returning to the classroom as soon as his treatment was over.”  

He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Jane Edwards Bonomo; daughter and son-in-law, Gina Bonomo and David Dugas; grandchildren, Ben Aldo Bonomo and Mary Marcella Dugas; sister and brother-in-law, Diana and William Adamo; and brother and sister-in-law, Walter and Constance Bonomo. 

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