Robert Curvin, a retired U.S Army 1st Lieutenant, completed his undergraduate degree at Rutgers-Newark in 1960. He later went on to obtain a master's degree at Rutgers University School of Social Work and a Ph.D. in political science at Princeton University in 1975. At Rutgers-Newark, Curvin served as an Adjunct Professor in the political science department and served as a faculty advisor to the Black Organization of Students (BOS).