June 14, 2017
Press contact: Rachel Flor (617) 514-1662
rachel.flor@jfklfoundation.org
Ronald L. Sargent Selected as Chairman of JFK Library Foundation
BOSTON, MA -- The Board of Directors of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation today announced that it has selected Ronald L. Sargent as its new chairman. Sargent is the retired chairman and chief executive officer of Staples, Inc. He has served on the Kennedy Library Foundation Board of Directors since 2010, and as the chairman of the Foundation’s Audit Committee since 2013. As the chair of the Foundation’s annual fundraising gala in 2013, Sargent raised a record-setting $2.5 million, which has since only been topped by the JFK Centennial gala in 2017.
Sargent will succeed current Board Chairman Kenneth R. Feinberg, who announced in April that he would retire at the conclusion of the 2017 year-long JFK Centennial celebration. Sargent will begin his post on January 1, 2018.
“My family and I are grateful to Ken for his many years of service to the Foundation and thrilled to have such a worthy successor in Ron Sargent,” said Caroline Kennedy, Honorary President of the Kennedy Library Foundation. “For years, Ron has tirelessly committed his time and resources to the Kennedy Library. His leadership, wisdom, and generosity will be critical as the Foundation moves beyond the centennial and works to bring my father’s legacy and the ideas he championed to new generations.”
“It has been one of the great honors of my professional life to serve the Kennedy Library Foundation,” said Feinberg. “It is with great enthusiasm that I pass the torch to Ron Sargent, whose leadership both in the business and philanthropic communities will be an enormous asset to this institution. I look forward to supporting his efforts as he has so generously done for me during my tenure.”
“I am humbled by the Board’s appointment and honored to take the reins from Ken Feinberg, who lives out President Kennedy’s legacy of service each day,” said Sargent. “I am especially grateful to Ambassador Kennedy and Ed Schlossberg for their support and confidence, and look forward to continuing to work closely with my exceptional colleagues on the Board of Directors and the staffs of the Foundation and Library to steward the important work of preserving and expanding access to President Kennedy’s public legacy for future generations.”
Sargent is the retired chairman and chief executive officer of Staples, Inc., a business products retailer, headquartered in Framingham, Massachusetts. He joined Staples in 1989 and progressed through a variety of management positions before he was named chief executive officer in 2002 and chairman in 2005, positions he held until June 2016 and January 2017, respectively. Before joining Staples, Sargent served in a variety of management positions at The Kroger Co. Mr. Sargent received an A.B. from Harvard College and a Master of Business Administration from the Harvard Business School. He is also a director of Wells Fargo, The Kroger Co., and Five Below, Inc. Currently, Sargent is a member of the Board of Governors of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, the Board of Directors of City of Hope, and the Board of Trustees of Northeastern University.
About the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation
The John F. Kennedy Library Foundation is a non-profit organization that provides financial support, staffing, and creative resources for the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. The private financial support provided by the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation enables the federal government to expand the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum’s research and archival capacity, to undertake marketing and public information projects, to offer intern and research fellowship programs, to enhance its museum and exhibits, and to offer nationally recognized educational and public programming.
By sponsoring and administering programs such as the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award, the New Frontier Award, and the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Essay Contest for High School Students, the Foundation is united with the Library in a common mission to perpetuate President Kennedy's ideal that political and public service be conducted and exemplified as an honorable and patriotic profession.
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