Stephen A. Schwarzman — a Role Model for Modern America
The story of Stephen A. Schwarzman is one of generosity and hard work. A year ago Stephen was listed as the fifty-third wealthiest in America collated by Forbes Magazine, but it is his patronage of the liberal arts and his outstanding business achivements that make him such a interesting character. Stephen’s life shows everybody that the keys to a successful life are working hard and, of course, persistence. The Blackstone Group was set up by Stephen Schwarzman and Peter Peterson as a firm providing investment advice and private equity. The firm has since grown from strength to strength and is now setting the standard in mergers and acquisitions. After calling the Philadelphia suburban area home for much of his young life, Stephen A. Schwarzman attended high school in the Abington School District. He graduated from Abington Senior High School; his next step was to receive his bachelor’s degree from the illustrious Connecticut University, Yale in 1969. He took on a program of post graduate study at the venerable Harvard Business school near Boston, MA. Once he had finished his time at college, Stephen started his career at Lehman Brothers. By his thirty second birthday, he was already on the board.
Stephen Schwarzman donates to a range of liberal arts as well as teaching as an adjunct professor at the esteemed Yale School of Management. Furthermore, he serves as the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in New York. In addition, to return even more to his community, he announced on March 11, 2008 that he was giving $100 million to the New York Public Library to fund their building plans. In fact, the library named one of their recently renovated buildings the “Stephen A. Schwarzman Building”.
And so, American high society looks to Stephen as a role model — he was described amongst Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People on earth in recognition of his international influence in business. His rise in the business and financial world has been spectacular, not to mention the fact that his support of the liberal arts and education has doubtlessly been an encouragement to the business world at large. With his dedication and his generosity of spirit, it appears as if there isn’t anything he can’t do. On the whole, Stephen A. Schwarzman is a man who has grasped each and every opportunity given to him, but in return he has at the same time made exemplary use of his wealth and status as a means to improve the lives of his countrymen.
