Emma Bloomberg and Roland G. Fryer, Jr. Elected to Robin Hood Board of Directors

NEW YORK, July 25, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- At its quarterly board meeting on Tuesday, July 22, Robin Hood elected Emma Bloomberg and Roland G. Fryer, Jr., to its board of directors.  Ms. Bloomberg is chair of the boards of directors for two education advocacy organizations -- Stand for Children, dedicated to improving public schools and closing the achievement gap, and Leadership for Educational Equity (LEE), focused on catalyzing leaders who have taught in low-income communities to advocate in the pursuit of educational equity.  Professor Fryer is the Robert M. Beren Professor of Economics at Harvard University and founder and CEO of the Education Innovation Laboratory at Harvard.    

"Emma and Roland are outstanding additions to our board of directors and we are extremely fortunate to have them join our efforts to find, fund and create effective and ground-breaking ways to help the 1.8 million New Yorkers living in poverty," said Barry Sternlicht, chairman and CEO of Starwood Capital Group and chairman of Robin Hood's board of directors.  "Emma's previous experience as Robin Hood's chief of staff, her passion for improving educational opportunities for children and her experience serving on the board of the Bloomberg Family Foundation will prove invaluable as we continue to develop programs that improve the lives of New Yorkers in need."

Mr. Sternlicht continued:  "Roland has been nationally recognized by both TIME Magazine and the MacArthur Foundation for his research in the fields of race and education, and his expertise in economics will help us strengthen our metrics-based approach to fighting poverty."  In addition to his 2011 MacArthur Foundation "Genius Grant," and being named one of TIME's "100 Most Influential People in the World" in 2009, Roland has worked on the Opportunity NYC project, which studied the effects of financial incentives on student achievement in New York City, and has researched and published extensively on affirmative action, the impact of the crack-cocaine epidemic, racial differences in health and life expectancy, the effect of attending historically black colleges and universities, and more.

Robin Hood also announced that two of its current board members – Brian Williams, anchor and managing editor of NBC Nightly News and Jeff Zucker, president of CNN Worldwide – will be joining Robin Hood's Emeritus Board.

"We are grateful to Brian and Jeff for their many years of service on behalf of Robin Hood and New York City," said Mr. Sternlicht.  "In addition to their other Robin Hood board obligations, Brian's tireless and hilarious tenure serving as host of our annual benefit, and Jeff's outstanding work on our development committee helped us raise hundreds of millions of dollars, every penny of which went to fund the most effective poverty fighting programs in the city.  We thank them for their hard work and generosity of spirit, and are thrilled they'll continue to serve via the Emeritus Board."  

For a complete list of Robin Hood's board members, please visit  www.robinhood.org/about/board

About Robin Hood

Robin Hood is New York's largest poverty-fighting organization, and since 1988 has focused on finding, funding, and creating programs and schools that generate meaningful results for families in New York's poorest neighborhoods.  Since its founding, Robin Hood has distributed nearly $1.5 billion in grants and initiatives to hundreds of New York City-based soup kitchens, homeless shelters, schools, job training programs, and other vital services that give New York's neediest citizens the tools they need to build better lives for themselves and their families.  In addition, Robin Hood's board of directors pays all administrative, fundraising and evaluation costs, so 100% of your donation goes directly to organizations helping New Yorkers in need.

Media Contact
Patty Smith/Robin Hood
212-844-3562

SOURCE Robin Hood