Jessica Bibliowicz is Chairman of the Board of Fellows of Weill Cornell Medicine. A successful entrepreneur in the financial services business for three decades, Bibliowicz has served on the Board of Fellows for the last 15 years. She was Chairman and CEO of National Financial Partners (NFP), a financial services firm that specializes in benefits and wealth management. Jessica is a member of the Board of Trustees of Cornell University, a member of the Board of Trustees of New York-Presbyterian, and a member of the Board of Directors for Jazz at Lincoln Center. She is also a member of the Board of Prudential Insurance Funds.
Bibliowicz graduated from Cornell University, has two sons, and lives with her husband in New York.
Angela Chan: Can you tell us about the $1.5 billion fundraising campaign for Weill Cornell Medicine?
Jessica Bibliowicz: The We’re Changing Medicine campaign is the largest in Weill Cornell Medicine's history and its first campaign in decades to advance and synergize all three institutional missions: to care, discover and teach. It will help fuel the one-of-a-kind, innovative work that Weill Cornell Medicine is currently doing and help shape an equitable future of medicine. It will reimagine the foundational science landscape, invest in bench-to-bedside research discoveries, including a precision health enterprise that focuses on personalized disease prevention and treatment, and support a diverse and gifted student body.
The past year has shown us just how critical science and medicine are to our communities, country, and the world. The work being done at our academic medical center can propel research in a way that saves millions of lives and sets new standards of compassionate and personalized care for patients everywhere.
We have surpassed the halfway point to our 1.5 billion dollar goal, with more than 750 million dollars raised. We have three foundational gifts that will no doubt inspire others throughout the life of this campaign.
Chan: Who are the key donors, and how will some of the generous donations will be used to propel the future of medicine?
Bibliowicz: In the fall of 2019, a transformative new scholarship program was established by Weill Cornell Medicine with a lead gift from Joan and Sanford I. Weill and the Weill Family Foundation—in partnership with The Starr Foundation, directed by Board Fellow Hank Greenberg.
Through these landmark gifts, including those from other generous donors that together totaled 160 million dollars, the scholarship program has already changed medicine and the lives of hundreds of students who will graduate from our medical school debt-free.
We're so proud of our debt-free medical education program because we have new data that has fostered a more diverse student body. Applications for Weill Cornell Medical College's Class of 2024 from students underrepresented in medicine rose to 29 percent, compared with 20 percent the previous year. To ensure this program continues in perpetuity, we will need to raise another $40 million to fully fund its scholarship endowment.
A remarkable 55-million-dollar gift from Lee and Jeffrey Feil and the Feil family will support the construction of a state-of-the-art student residence on East 74th Street, expanding the Weill Cornell campus. The new student residence will create a modern environment to further enrich our students' medical education—preparing them to be the healthcare leaders of tomorrow—and attracting the best and the brightest future doctors to our campus. Jeffrey Feil and the Feil family have long been steadfast donors to Weill Cornell Medicine, and this incredible gift builds on their impressive dedication to our students and their well-being.
Leadership gifts like these allow us to think bigger than before and take dramatic steps forward as an institution.
Chan: Can you talk about your journey of transitioning from a highly successful Wall Street career to become a philanthropic role? Why philanthropy?
Bibliowicz: There was no real transition between my career and board positions because I was always balancing the two - working and giving at the same time. Organizations need the expertise, connections, and business acumen that board members provide. On the other hand, the mission orientation of a charitable organization makes business leaders more engaged in and in tune with their community. Charitable work has become such a tremendous part of my life because it's where I've found my passion. It's all-encompassing, so it becomes your life.
Chan: If you could go back in time and knowing what you know today, what is the one piece of advice you would have given to yourself when you first started your career?
Bibliowicz: If I could give my younger self advice, it would be to remain open to possibilities. It never occurred to me until later in life that I would be so moved by science and medicine. The person you are at 25 is not always the person you are going to be, and you can change your path later in life to find and follow your passion.
Chan: Any advice for women executives seeking their first board role? Where should they start?
Bibliowicz: If you want to join a board, find a way to connect your professional life with your personal life, so you don't stretch yourself too thin. It is important to make sure the organization's mission connects with your expertise or passion because it's much harder to make a time commitment if you are just going through the motions. When you are deeply connected, you are all in, and you can make it blossom.
Chan: Anything else that you wish to inform our readers?
Bibliowicz: Weill Cornell Medicine has faced some of the nation’s most pressing health issues—and has risen to the challenge. Our culture of equity, diversity, and justice for our patients and communities—embraced by our students, staff, and faculty—fosters excellence throughout our institution.
The pandemic shined a light on the importance of medicine and science. When people feel needed and see that they can add value in many ways—not just by giving money—they forge a deeper commitment. Many of the Board of Fellows have gotten to know Weill Cornell better than ever before.
One of the reasons that Weill Cornell Medicine is attractive is that we can share the science with our donors. Our doctors, our researchers, and our students can talk about things that are so mesmerizing, so exciting, and promising. It makes it hard to say, "I don't want to invest in the future of medicine."
This campaign underscores our dedication to treating the whole patient, the whole family, over their entire life—using the most advanced and groundbreaking treatments. We are also teaching the next generation of thought leaders—as nearly 45% of our students become faculty in academic medicine. This is a very exciting time in science and medicine, and Weill Cornell Medicine is ready to lead the way.
