The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
5 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT DONOR
Billionaire Robert F. Smith, the technology investor, gave Morehouse scholars the ultimate graduation gift when he announced during Sunday’s commencement that he would pay off all student debt for the graduating Class of 2019. Here are five things you sho
Third richest American How he got started
Smith, who grew up in Denver, became interested in the tech field in high school. When he was a junior, he landed an internship at Bell Labs by calling the company every week for five months until he got a position. During his summer and Christmas breaks, he worked on computers. “I got hooked on technology,” he said in a 2016 interview.
Ivy League graduate
Smith earned his degree in chemical engineering from Cornell University, where he became a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity. He later snagged his master of business administration degree from Columbia Business School in 1994. The third richest American and the richest black man in the nation, Smith, 56, made his fortune through the private equity firm, Vista Equity Partners, which he founded in 2000. According to the company’s website, Vista currently manages equity capital commitments of more than $46 billion and oversees a portfolio of more than 50 software companies. Before launching Vista, Smith worked an investment banking job at Goldman Sachs, where he worked on tech mergers and acquisitions for brands such as Apple, Microsoft and Texas Instruments.
Philanthropist
Before the National Museum of African American History and Culture opened, he pledged a $20 million gift to the facility. In 2016, he, along with the Fund II Foundation, gifted Cornell University with $50 million. And ahead of his graduation speech at Morehouse, he donated $1.5 million to the school for scholarships and a new park.
Husband and father
In 2015, he married Hope Dworaczyk, who is a model, TV host and reality television personality. The couple has two sons and live in Austin, Texas.