Who Dat? Bill Goldring
INfluential leader Tennis enthusiast, alumnus and longtime Tulane University supporter Bill Goldring (top row, third from right) is pictured among a group of tennis players. Goldring (B ’64), chairman of Sazerac Co. and Crescent Crown Co., is among the “100 Influential Leaders” recognized by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International) in September. AACSB International honored Goldring and other university supporters nationwide. Tulane nominated Goldring for the award, which recognizes alumni from AACSB-accredited schools who are making a difference in the world through their business acumen, initiative or entrepreneurial success. This is the inaugural class of Influential Leaders. According to the organization, Goldring “has demonstrated great vision, superb leadership, and high impact. He has had a transformative impact on New Orleans and surrounding regions in education, the arts, health care, and public open space.” “I’m so honored by this recognition,” Goldring said. “On my 21st birthday my father told me to use any success I achieved to help others. He told me that was the key to happiness, and he was right.” Goldring is active and generous within the Tulane community. “The Goldring family has been central to our identity and success as one of the country’s top business schools,” said Ira Solomon, dean of A. B. Freeman School of Business. “Every business dean, every city wishes they knew a Bill Goldring, not only for his philanthropy
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but for the generosity of his time, advice and humanity.” Goldring has provided funding for A. B. Freeman School of Business buildings and was named Freeman’s Outstanding Alumnus in 1989. He is a member of the Tulane University Business School Council, a past member of the President’s Council at Tulane, president of the Howard-Tilton Memorial Library Association, and a recipient of the Tulane University Paul Tulane Society Award, the A. B. Freeman School of Business Distinguished Entrepreneur of the Year Award and the Dermot McGlinchey Lifetime Achievement Award. He helped establish the Goldring Tennis Center at Tulane and more recently, the Goldring Center for Culinary Medicine at Tulane University, the nation’s first medical school teaching kitchen. Outside Tulane, Goldring’s philanthropies have provided leadership for a number of academic, cultural and other institutions. He has provided funding for the Goldring-Woldenberg Jewish Community Center in Metairie; the Holocaust Memorial in New Orleans; the Goldring/ Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life in Jackson, Mississippi; and the restoration of Temple Sinai. Goldring was instrumental in developing Woldenberg Park, a Mississippi River-front park in downtown New Orleans, as well as New Orleans City Park’s Great Lawn. Established in 1916, AACSB International is a worldwide nonprofit organization that accredits business schools and advances and improves management education.—Mike Strecker