NYU Langone Health paid tribute to its Board of Trustees chair, Kenneth G. Langone, and the top-ranked institution’s dean and CEO, Robert I. Grossman, MD, on Tuesday, June 3, at their final Violet Ball in their current roles. Held in the iconic Temple of Dendur at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYU Langone’s signature fundraising event also celebrated more than $5.5 billion raised over the past 18 years.
With Langone’s enthusiastic backing, Dr. Grossman assumed the helm of what was then NYU Medical Center in 2007, a debt-plagued, poorly ranked, single hospital.
With Langone’s significant support and the philanthropy he inspired in so many others, NYU Langone Health has over the years recruited some of the best minds in science and healthcare to form what is today a fully integrated, top-ranked health system that consistently achieves the best patient outcomes across its seven inpatient locations and more than 320 outpatient sites in New York and Florida. Langone and Dr. Grossman also shared a vision of making medical school tuition-free, with NYU Grossman School of Medicine leading the charge with its pioneering announcement in 2018. Today, the system has a second tuition-free medical school on Long Island, a vast research enterprise, and revenues of $14.2 billion. Langone and his wife, Elaine, are NYU Langone’s most generous supporters, having already given upwards of $750 million.
“The evolution of NYU Langone from a struggling safety-net hospital to one of the world’s leading health systems is a phenomenal story,” Langone said. “It has been my great privilege to write that story alongside Bob Grossman and so many others. We have had the wonderful opportunity to change many lives for the better—for an ever-growing number of patients, students, families, doctors, nurses, and researchers. We focused on transforming NYU Langone’s culture, and the rest followed.”
“Ken Langone is a remarkable person and the greatest board chair, champion, and friend anyone can ask for. He and I have been on a magnificent journey these past 18 years. I am so fortunate to have partnered with him on a transformation that resulted in NYU Langone ascending to heights no one could have ever imagined,” said Dr. Grossman. “Our firsts are numerous, and the entire NYU Langone community shares the pride of having the best quality and safety metrics in the U.S. I am certain our talented successors will build and magnify our foundational exceptionalism.”
Violet Ball guests also recognized and welcomed Fiona Druckenmiller, board chair designate and longtime trustee, alongside Alec Kimmelman, MD, PhD, incoming dean and CEO. Both will assume their new roles on September 1.
“I am honored to step into this role leading our unmatched Board of Trustees,” said Druckenmiller, “and to forge a new working partnership with Alec, a distinguished physician–scientist with a track record of exceptional contributions to our health system and a passion for relentless innovation and compassionate care.”
“From the moment I arrived at NYU Langone, I realized what an extraordinary place this is, and the extraordinary opportunity—and responsibility—Fiona and I now have to build upon the truly amazing legacy of Ken Langone and Bob Grossman,” said Dr. Kimmelman, who is currently director of the Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Â鶹ĘÓƵapp Center at NYU Langone. “Fiona will be an incredible partner, and I know that together we will find new ways to enhance patient care and write the next chapter of NYU Langone.”
The Violet Ball recognized tremendous support from a roster of philanthropists who championed and fueled NYU Langone’s myriad advancements in healthcare over the past two decades, and eight new transformative gifts totaling nearly $160 million were announced.
Larry and Lori Fink, Fiona and Stanley Druckenmiller, and The Home Depot organization co-chaired the Violet Ball. More than 400 guests attended, including Cecilia Absher and David Katz, Heather Baker, Christine and Turner Batty, Marjorie and William Berkley, Lisa and Mark Bezos, Frank Blake, Susan Block Casdin and Alexander Casdin, Ellen and Allen Breed, Marjorie Buckley, Barbara and Evan Chesler, Melanie and Josh Clark, Wendy Commins-Holman and Wayne Holman, Ted Decker, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Trudy Elbaum Gottesman and Robert Gottesman, Laura and Daniel Gold, Linda and William Haugland, Michele and David Knapp, Danielle Knapp-SanGiovanni and Jesse SanGiovanni, Julia Koch, Kelly and Stephen Mack, Dawn and Craig Menear, Allison and Roberto Mignone, Karen and Thomas Murphy, Jr., Lisa Pevaroff-Cohn and Gary Cohn, Stephanie Rein and Edward Stern, Klara and Larry Silverstein, Chandrika Tandon, Nicole and David Tepper, Alice Tisch, and Beatrice Welters. Proceeds from the Violet Ball itself will support critical campus transformation and expansion needs across NYU Langone.
Media Inquiries
Arielle Sklar
Phone: 646-960-2696
Arielle.Sklar@NYULangone.org
