Annual Report to Investors - The American College

The Legacy of Dr. Barton—In Their Words
Todd M. Schoon, JD, CLU ® , ChFC ®
Chairman, The American College
Board of Trustees
“The College has accomplished so much over the last 10 years
under Dr. Barton’s leadership. He has put The College back on
the map. He has both kept us engaged with traditional companies,
and expanded our scope to all of financial services—all
while keeping us aligned with Solomon Huebner’s vision and
grounding us in our purpose. Ultimately, everyone has benefitted,
most especially the consumer. I’ve been continually
reminded while serving as Trustee Board Chair of how his presence
and persona pull people toward him. His personal charisma
and deep conviction regarding the mission of The College are
contagious. As Chancellor of The College, he will be in position
to do what he does best – share the story of The College broadly
with more people, without being encumbered with the demands
of day-to-day operations. Elevating him to Chancellor plays to
Dr. Barton’s strengths. There is every reason for a great sense of
confidence that The College will continue to move forward in a
positive way without missing a beat. “
Frederick J. Sievert, MSM
Life Trustee, The American College
“Larry unselfishly gives me way too much credit for turning
around the institution in 2006 and 2007. The truth is he deserves
the credit. Leading a very able staff, he was the one who developed
the long term vision and strategies, and executed them
skillfully over the past decade. He transformed The American
College into the citadel of education and learning for our industry.
And he took what appeared to be a dying institution and made it
extraordinarily relevant once again. All of us in the industry owe
him a debt of great gratitude.”
Reginald N. Rabjohns, CLU ® , ChFC ®
Campaign Chair, The American College
Foundation Board of Directors
“Larry is highly motivated to perform at superior levels, and he
has! He didn’t come from the insurance or financial services
business. His training, knowledge, prejudices, and beliefs about
our business and the people and companies that make it work
were not identical, nor traditional for the majority of us, making
his presidency and his achievements, I believe, the most important
in our College’s history since Dr. Huebner opened the doors
in 1927. He is a leader, inspirational and visionary, not held back
by ‘this is how we’ve always done it!’ He has built a great team
of professionals, and a powerful and diverse Board of committed
leaders. He also just happens to be a great guy.”
Peter C. Browne, LUTCF
Chairman, The American College Foundation
Board of Directors
“I can sum it up in one word: legacy. He has a legacy and that is
The American College. He has transformed it. From the time he
came on board, The College took an entirely different turn. He
had no idea how grave the financial situation was. He managed
to pull everyone together to come to a common agreement. He
consolidated things. He got people to do things they hadn’t done
before. He put together a strong team and got the board engaged.
And he stayed for the long haul, bringing The College into
the modern era of financial services education. His wife, Eliza,
has complemented his involvement, and that’s been very, very
important. With him at the helm, The College is recognized in
the industry as a strong educational institution with an
endowment that now has a value in excess of $100 million. “
2006
Diversity Matters
First held in 2006 with founding sponsor MetLife, the Conference of African American Financial
Professionals brings together leading companies from across the industry to further the
education, advancement and heritage of African American financial professionals.
3