Biz leader to speak on corporate governance at Wagner College
On Monday, April 11 at 7 p.m. in Spiro Hall 2, Wagner College will host the Seventh Annual Presidential Economic Symposium, featuring a keynote address by Kurt Landgraf entitled, “Corporate Governance as a Social Imperative.”
The program is free, and the public is invited. Register online at wagner.edu/econsymposium.
Landgraf, a 1968 graduate of Wagner College, was awarded an honorary doctorate by his alma mater in 2008. The former president and CEO of Educational Testing Service currently sits on the boards of several Fortune 500 companies.
“American corporations have become the subjects of significant — often unfair — social and political criticism, which has intensified since the financial crisis of 2008,” Landgraf said.
“Corporations — whether public, private, for-profit or not-for-profit — have significant responsibilities to the many constituencies in their societal matrix: shareholders, employees, communities, clients and customers.”
Landgraf’s keynote address will examine the roles and responsibilities of the corporate board in ensuring both the short- and long-term focus on the corporation’s societal responsibilities. He will also talk about the importance of corporate governance, shareholder activism and performance metrics in maximizing societal value, with emphasis on the variables that impact structure and outcomes.
Landgraf served as president and chief executive officer of Educational Testing Service from 2000 to 2013.
Founded in 1947, ETS is the world’s largest private nonprofit educational testing and assessment organization. Its best-known tests include the GRE and TOEFL — the Graduate Record Examination and the Test of English as a Foreign Language. Under Landgraf’s leadership, ETS entered the K–12 market, expanded its global business, broadened its education research activities and nurtured its social mission through collaborations with groups serving underrepresented students. Landgraf began his career at ETS more than 30 years ago, when he served as associate director of marketing.
Before returning to ETS in 2000, he held leadership positions at DuPont — including chief operating officer, chief financial officer, and chairman and chief executive officer of the DuPont Pharmaceutical Company — and at the Upjohn Company.
Besides expanding ETS’ business and research activities, Landgraf led the company’s efforts to help close the academic achievement gap between affluent and disadvantaged students. ETS strengthened its ties to historically black colleges and universities, the National Urban League, the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, the ASPIRA Association, and Native American education groups. Landgraf also led the establishment of innovative company programs to assist New Jersey communities and service groups and improve education.
Landgraf serves on the boards of the Louisiana-Pacific Corporation, Corning Incorporated and Remedy Pharmaceuticals. He has chaired the National Pharmaceutical Council, United Way of Delaware and Delaware CarePlan, and he has served as president of the National Consortium for Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science Inc.
During the last 20 years, Landgraf has served on the public sector boards of IKON Office Solutions, NDC Health Care and AAI Pharmaceuticals.
Landgraf earned his bachelor’s degree in economics and business administration from Wagner College.
He also holds three master’s degrees, an M.Ed. from Rutgers University; an M.A. in economics from Pennsylvania State University, and an M.S. in sociology from Western Michigan University. He is a graduate of the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program, has received four honorary doctorates and has taught college-level economics, sociology and labor relations at institutions throughout the United States.
In 2008, Wagner College awarded Landgraf a doctor of humane letters degree, honoris causa.
