By Jenna Notar, Staff Writer
Hofstra’s 75th anniversary will be marked by new beginnings. New dining services unveiled, new faculty have been appointed, and a new medical school, which will welcome its first class in Fall 2011, is anticipated by students.
President Stuart Rabinowitz is setting Hofstra on an academically progressive course, which distinguishes it from other well-known liberal arts colleges across the country. In order to facilitate campus projects, Rabinowitz recently began new, progressive visionaries. Among those is the new Board of Trustees member, Peter G. Schiff.
Schiff is a well-respected business leader and philanthropist who graduated from Lake Forest College in Illinois. He then went on to receive an M.B.A from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business with concentrations in finance and marketing. He became an officer in the corporate division of Chemical Bank, now JPMorgan Chase & Co., and also worked in the private equity division of E.M. Warburg, Pincus & Co., before founding Northwood Ventures in 1983.
Schiff is president of Northwood Ventures LLC, which invests in typically young companies that are rapidly-growing. One recognizable company that Schiff’s group backs is Office Depot. Northwood Ventures is currently involved with InterCapital Partners LLC, an expert group of financing consultants to commercial property owners nationwide, according to Schiff.
Schiff is a longtime supporter of the Wildlife Conservation Society, as well as a member of the Community Foundation of Oyster Bay and the Belmont Childcare Association. He also supports the North Shore-LIJ Health System, which is partnering with The University’s new medical school.
Although Schiff was urged by friend and fellow member Leo A. Guthart for years to join Hofstra’s Board of Trustees, it was not until now that Schiff is freed up from prior commitments.
“I am just learning about Hofstra right now. I am in a learning, get-up-to-speed mode,” said Schiff.
Although Schiff may have some catching up to do on Hofstra’s history, he’s experienced in his position. In 2009, Lake Forest College awarded him the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws after serving as a trustee for 16 years, which culminated in him being its chairman. During this time he was in charge of various capital campaigns and building projects.
