Hedge fund managers in New York may be better known for eight-figure incomes, which afford them the best Manhattan penthouses and Greenwich, Conn., waterfront estates. But they also are all on the boards of many of the city’s charters schools and support organizations. They include Whitney Tilson, who runs T2 Partners; David Einhorn of Greenlight Capital; Tony Davis of Anchorage Advisors; and Ravenel Boykin Curry IV of Eagle Capital Management.
The Tiger Foundation, started by the hedge fund billionaire Julian Robertson, gives a large amount of financial backing for a dozen charters across the city. Mr. Robertson’s son, Spencer, founded his own school last year, PAVE Academy in the Brooklyn, while his daughter-in-law, Sarah Robertson, is chairwoman of the Girls Preparatory Charter School on the Lower East Side.
“If you’re at a hedge fund, this is definitely the hot cause,” said Joe Williams, the executive director of Democrats for Education Reform, a nonprofit group that lobbies for charters and is financed by hedge fund players. “These are the kind of guys who a decade ago would have been spending their time angling to get on the junior board of the Met, the ballet.” Instead, they now have a social conscience and are putting their talents to work.
It is an AMAZING breath of fresh air to hear that Wall Street is doing something to positively impact our society. The truth is that these hedge fund managers are close to geniuses and any time they contribute to thinking about how to help charter schools will be a valuable asset. This story should be a standard for those elite and privileged professionals that show it only takes a small amount of one’s time to truly make a difference. I believe that the private sector will be the savior of this country and NOT big government. This is just an example of this actualization.
This blog is based on the New York Times article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/06/fashion/06charter.html
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