Trustee Candidate: Robert Stricker
How to Vote
Return to your email about the election for your direct link to the ballot. No need to log in or remember a password!
If you have not received an email with a link to the ballot, please contact the Office of Alumni Relations at alumni@tufts.edu or 1-800-THE-ALUM (800-843-2586).
Election deadline: April 8, 2013, 11 pm EDT
Greenwich, Conn.
B.S., Electrical Engineering, 1969; S.M., Operations Research, MIT, 1970; M.B.A.,
Finance, University of Connecticut, 1975
Occupation:
retired, senior vice president, Shenkman Capital Management
Alumni Activities:
Board of Advisors for Engineering (2011–present); Tufts Financial Network Advisory Committee (2008–present); 35th and 40th Reunion Committee (2004, 2009); TAAP Committee member for Fairfield County (2006–2010); Packard Society Leadership Council co-chair (2005–2006)
Non-Tufts Activities:
director, Horace Mann Educators Corporation; director, CQS Investment Management Limited; chair, Greenwich, Conn., OPEB Trust Fund Board; member, National Association of Corporate Directors; former finance committee chair, Connecticut Grand Opera & Orchestra
Family:
wife, Jane Simon Stricker; children, Trevor and Jamison; grandchildren, Charlie (3) and Jamie (1)
Statement:
I grew up the oldest of five kids in an immigrant family. I slept on a pull-out sofa in the living room. And yet, my excitement about going away to Tufts wasn't derived from having a real bed to myself for the first time in a “luxury” dorm room in the basement of Miller. Instead, it was the opportunity to get a terrific education and gain experiences and friends to create the foundation on which to launch my career.
I was the first in my family to attend college, and I was only able to do so (despite what seems like laughingly low tuition by today's standards) due to a large amount of financial aid in the form of scholarships, student loans, and work study. I remain grateful to this day. My first job at Tufts was operating the switchboard at Carmichael. Incredibly, my first job after graduation was working on the first electronic toll switching system in the world at Bell Labs.
I think it is important that the next generation applying to Tufts have the same opportunities that Tufts gave me regardless of their family background. Could an immigrant child with a keen mind but modest means attend Tufts today? Without ending up under a mountain of debt?
As a trustee, I will work to help Tufts raise funds. Tufts should be admitting the best and most qualified students regardless of their financial means. As someone whose career was spent managing investments in every market condition, I will work to make sure our endowment is wisely invested.
As someone in awe of the rapid proliferation of technology, I would make sure that the School of Engineering is a well-funded academic institution where world-class faculty and their students, working in modern facilities, can push the boundaries in collaboration with faculty colleagues from our other schools, such as medicine. Where research currently being conducted in areas such as silk-based biomaterials will lead to innovative new products and intellectual property rights producing royalties for the university.
Finally, I will engage alumni to harness the deep network we have across disciplines and around the world to the advantage of our graduating students. For example, while Tufts does not have a business school, we have a large contingent of alumni on Wall Street, and I will work with them and through my role as a founding member of the Tufts Financial Network Advisory Committee, to prepare our graduates for careers in finance if they are so inclined.
Tufts is a preeminent university that has benefited over the years from strong leadership, dedicated faculty, and loyal alumni. This creates a virtuous circle by attracting an exceptional student body from all over the world and every ethnic background. I met my wife at Tufts and we were married at Goddard Chapel the week before commencement. Little did I realize then that one day I would be a trustee candidate for our great university, and I am humbled and honored to have been asked to run. I owe a great deal to Tufts and feel strongly about giving back to Tufts for everything it has given to me.
