AACSB International (AACSB), the global accrediting body and membership association for business schools, today (Sept. 22) revealed that Clark University trustee and alumnus Lawrence Landry has been recognized as one of the first 100 AACSB Influential Leaders. Landry’s work exemplifies the innovative mindset and meaningful contributions to society that Clark University graduates display around the world and every day—whether they operate within large corporations, small businesses or the nonprofit sector.
Landry earned his BS/BA in management in 1971 and an MBA in 1975 from Clark University. He was Clark’s Chief Financial Officer in the late 1970s. He is founder and CEO of Masterpiece Living, an organization built on a specific philosophy of aging well and living longer. Masterpiece Living is based on research that initially came out of the MacArthur Foundation Study on Aging. Masterpiece Living provides resources and training to help Certified Centers for Successful Aging (CSA) provide and measure the effects of programming that supports the successful aging of their clientele. Landry’s brother, Dr. Roger Landry, is president of Masterpiece Living and is the author of “Live Long Die Short: A Guide for Authentic Health and Successful Aging.”
“I’m honored to receive the AACSB Influential Leader Award and thankful to Clark University and others for preparing me to challenge convention and to want to make a difference,” said Landry. “It was the Clark experience that guided me to become entrepreneurial and create programs like Masterpiece Living to positively impact society.”
Landry also previously has held several senior financial positions, including CFO at Swarthmore and Chief Investment Officer for Southern Methodist University and at the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation for more than ten years. He was co-creator and the first Chairman of The Investment Fund for Foundations (TIFF). TIFF was founded in 1991 by a network of foundations to support the investing activities of non-profits who cannot afford their own internal investment organizations. After leaving the MacArthur Foundation, Landry founded Westport Advisors, an investment company that funds and develops continuing care retirement communities throughout the United States.
Landry joins individuals such as the CEO of one of the world’s largest global relief services, a technology pioneer who is working to cure cancer, the founder of a global e-commerce powerhouse, and an enterprising president attributed with reviving an international toy industry favorite. More than 20 industry sectors, from consumer products to healthcare to nonprofits, across 21 countries, are present in this year’s group.
“Throughout his professional career, Larry has applied his business skills and financial acumen to support non-profit organizations and organizations that are critical to human development and well-being (universities, foundations, and senior living facilities). He also has brought his expertise and the value of his many years of experience at different organizations to the Clark Board of Trustees, where he served as a trustee for 20 years, including as chair and vice chair.” ~ Catherine Usoff, Dean of the Graduate School of Management
For the nomination process, AACSB developed a short list of open-ended questions that provided a framework for expectations for nominees. From April to June 2015, AACSB-accredited schools submitted notable alumni who have made (or are making) an impact in the world. From the nominations, a selection committee reviewed and chose stories that showed a sampling of the positive impact that business school graduates have made on society.
“It is my honor to recognize Lawrence Landry for his contributions as an Influential Leader, and to thank Clark’s Graduate School of Management for its dedication to providing a business education environment based on engagement, innovation, and impact,” said Thomas R. Robinson, president and chief executive officer of AACSB International. “If told, the success stories of all business school graduates would fill unmeasurable volumes. AACSB is honored to celebrate Mr. Landry—and the collective 100 Influential Leaders—as a representation of how business school alumni have positively influenced society, as well as the management education industry’s past, present, and promising future.”
For the full list of recipients, visit www.aacsb.edu/Influential-Leaders.
Founded in 1916, AACSB is an association of more than 1,450 educational institutions, businesses, and other organizations in 89 countries and territories. AACSB’s mission is to advance quality management education worldwide through accreditation, thought leadership, and value-added services. As the premier accreditation body for institutions offering undergraduate, master’s, and doctorate degrees in business and accounting, AACSB offers a wide array of services to the management education industry. AACSB’s global headquarters is located in Tampa, Florida, USA; its Asia Pacific headquarters is located in Singapore; and its Europe, Middle East, and Africa headquarters is located in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
Founded in 1887 in Worcester, Massachusetts, Clark University is a liberal arts-based research university addressing social and human imperatives on a global scale. Nationally renowned as a college that changes lives, Clark is emerging as a transformative force in higher education today. LEEP (Liberal Education and Effective Practice) is Clark’s pioneering model of education that combines a robust liberal arts curriculum with life-changing world and workplace experiences. Clark’s faculty and students work across boundaries to develop solutions to complex challenges in the natural sciences, psychology, geography, management, urban education, Holocaust and genocide studies, environmental studies, and international development and social change. The Clark educational experience embodies the University’s motto: Challenge Convention. Change Our World.
Contacts:
Jane Salerno, Media Relations
jsalerno@clarku.edu
Amy Ponzillo
Senior Manager, Public Relations
MediaRelations@aacsb.edu