From left, James S. Tisch, Peter W. May, and Richard A. Friedman
On Monday, April 22, during the annual meeting of the Mount Sinai Health System Boards of Trustees, there was an item on the agenda that had not appeared in nearly two decades—the election of a new Chairman. With little fanfare as the meeting was about to conclude, Peter W. May, who had led the Trustees as Chairman for 17 years, presented two gavels—one to Richard A. Friedman, and the other to James S. Tisch—who had just been confirmed as the new Co-Chairmen of the Boards of Trustees. Mr. May will now continue as Chairman Emeritus.
Mr. Friedman has been a member of the Boards of Trustees since 2001, and in 2010, a substantial gift from the Friedman family allowed for the creation of The Friedman Brain Institute. Mr. Tisch has been a Trustee since 1988. A generous donation from the Tisch family allowed for the establishment of The Tisch Cancer Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
“It is difficult to overstate what Peter has achieved through his inspiring leadership,” Mr. Friedman and Mr. Tisch wrote in a joint statement. “When he assumed the Chairmanship in 2002, there were cracks in the financial foundation of what was then called The Mount Sinai Medical Center. Peter was determined that Mount Sinai would not merely survive, it would thrive.”
They continued: “Under Peter May, the culture of Mount Sinai has experienced an extraordinary transformation. Peter has been such an exemplary Chairman that the Boards felt they needed two of us to replace him.”
In a separate interview, Mr. Tisch said, “Peter has left Richard and me with enormous expectations—taking over after this 17-year run, which has been up, up, up, up, up, with new and higher heights for the Health System and the School of Medicine. I am elated to have a partner as co-chairman, especially in view of the fact that I have a day job, as did Peter, and the notion of doing this alone is truly daunting.”
Mr. Tisch is Chief Executive Officer of Loews Corporation, where he has worked since 1977. He is also Chairman of the Board of Directors of Diamond Off shore Drilling, Inc., and a member of the Boards of Directors of CNA Financial Corporation and the General Electric Company. Additionally, Mr. Tisch is a member of the Board of Directors of The New York Public Library and a former director of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. He is the past Chairman of WNET and the Jewish Agency for Israel. Mr. Tisch also serves on the Executive Committee of the Partnership for New York City, and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Mr. Friedman is Chairman of the Merchant Banking Division of Goldman Sachs, where he has worked since 1981. He is a member of the company’s Management Committee and the Chairman of the Corporate, Real Estate, Infrastructure, and Cooperation Fund Investment Committees. Additionally, Mr. Friedman oversees Launch With GS, the company’s answer to narrowing the gender investment gap, which aims to invest $500 million in women-led companies. He has made substantial contributions to fund scholarships at the Icahn School of Medicine, and he is Chairman of the Development Committee of the Boards of Trustees, leading the institution’s current capital campaign.
“From what I know of other organizations,” Mr. Friedman said during an interview, “what was created here is pretty special. Peter really brought inspiration and confidence to the Trustees, and to the whole organization, and completely changed the whole culture of the institution to a winning culture. Now, we need to carry forward the overall strategy of making Mount Sinai one of the great integrated health care systems, not only here in the United States, but in the world.”