Barry Sternlicht Appointed Robin Hood's Chairman of the Board; Three New Board Members Also Announced

NEW YORK, Feb. 26, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Robin Hood, New York's largest private poverty-fighting organization, has appointed Barry Sternlicht, chairman and CEO, Starwood Capital Group, as the new chairman of its board of directors.  Mr. Sternlicht previously served as vice chairman of Robin Hood's board and replaces Lee S. Ainslie, III, managing partner, Maverick Capital Management, LLC, who steps down after a two-year term.  Mr. Ainslie will continue to serve on Robin Hood's Executive Committee. 

David Einhorn, president of Greenlight Capital and John A. Griffin, founder and president of Blue Ridge Capital, were named vice chairmen.

"As chair and vice chair of Robin Hood's board of directors, Lee's and Barry's contributions to the ongoing fight against poverty in New York City have been invaluable," said David Saltzman, executive director of Robin Hood.  "Under their stewardship, Robin Hood raised and granted more than $340 million to hundreds of the most effective organizations serving our neediest neighbors, and raised an additional $67 million to help individuals and families recover from Hurricane Sandy; we are deeply grateful for their ongoing guidance and leadership."

Robin Hood is also pleased to announce the election of three new members to its board of directors, Jacklyn Bezos, Anne Dinning, and John Overdeck. 

Jacklyn "Jackie" Bezos is president and co-founder of the Bezos Family Foundation, which supports rigorous, inspired learning environments for young people to put their education into action. Through investments in research, public awareness and programs, the foundation works to elevate the field of education and improve life outcomes for all children.  Ms. Bezos serves on the board of directors for the Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences (I-LABS), TED-Ed, Global Nomads Group, and Thrive by Five Washington.  Ms. Bezos is a graduate of the College of St. Elizabeth.

Anne Dinning is a managing director of D. E. Shaw & Co., L.P. and member of the Executive Committee of the D. E. Shaw group, a global investment and technology development firm with offices in North America, Europe, and Asia.  Dr. Dinning jointly supervises the firm's worldwide asset management businesses and also serves on the firm's Risk Committee.  She has a strong interest in education and joins the Robin Hood board after serving on its Education Committee and Leadership Council.  Dr. Dinning also serves on the board of directors of Math for America.  She is a graduate of the University of Washington and earned a Ph.D. in Computer Science from New York University's Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences.

John Overdeck is co-chairman and co-founder of Two Sigma Investments, a technology company that applies a rigorous, scientific method-based approach to investment management.  In addition to his management and leadership responsibilities at Two Sigma, John also oversees the majority of the Firm's model development, trade execution, and risk management capabilities.  Prior to co-founding Two Sigma, John was a managing director at D. E. Shaw & Co. and was formerly a vice president with Amazon.com.  John received a degree in mathematics with distinction in 1989 from Stanford University, where he continued his studies as a doctoral candidate in statistics.  John is a trustee of the National Museum of Mathematics and serves on the advisory board for the Robin Hood X Prize.

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. Over its 25 year history, Robin Hood has distributed more than $1.25 billion 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