Haverford College alum Howard Lutnick, the college’s largest donor, was confirmed Tuesday night by the U.S. Senate to be President Donald Trump’s new Secretary of Commerce, writes Fallon Roth for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
The billionaire has been CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, a financial services firm, since 1991.
Lutnick, 63, has close ties to Trump and co-chaired the president’s transition team, vetting appointees for the president’s second term.
He donated more than $10 million to Trump’s 2024 presidential run, as he raised millions more from donors.
Howard Lutnick was an early advocate for the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
He studied economics at Haverford College and has said he would not be where he is today without the college’s support.
Lutnick nearly had to drop out in his freshman year there, having lost his mother to breast cancer the year before and then experiencing the sudden death of his father. The college president stepped in and said his tuition would be covered.
“When you’re going through hell, who takes care of you, it goes in your soul,” Lutnick said in 2024.
He joined the school’s board of managers after he graduated in 1983 and eventually chaired the board.
Read more about Howard Lutnik’s confirmation and links to Haverford College in The Philadelphia Inquirer.
