June 2006

Lerner Family Lands Washington Nationals Baseball Team

GW Alumnus and Trustee Emeritus Theodore Lerner Awarded DC’s Major League Baseball Franchise

GW alumnus and trustee emeritus Theodore N. Lerner, AA ’48, LLB ’50, and his family, which includes three other GW graduates, have been selected by Major League Baseball as the new owners of the Washington Nationals. Lerner is to be the managing principal owner of the franchise, which was moved to Washington from Montreal in 2005. Other principal owners are son Mark Lerner, BBA ’75, sons-in-law Edward L. Cohen and Robert K. Tanenbaum, JD ’82, and their families.
Lerner, who served on the GW board from 1986 to 2001 and is a recipient of GW’s Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award, said, “We are very proud and excited we have been selected as the new owners of the Washington Nationals. Our partners and our family are committed to making this a competitive, enduring, family-oriented and operated franchise. We look forward to working closely with the community, DC officials, area businesses, and, of course, the fans to help make our team a model of excellence in the baseball community.”

In addition to the Lerners, other investors in the group include Stan Kasten, who
will serve as the Nationals’ president; Paxton K. Baker, president of BET Event Productions and executive vice president and general manager of BET Digital Networks for Black Entertainment Television (BET); James
T. Brown, host of the CBS Television Network’s NFL pre-game show and The NFL Today; Faye F. Fields, president and CEO of Integrated Resource Technologies, Inc.; Alphonso Maldon Jr., senior vice president, Corporate Banking for PNC Bank; B. Doyle Mitchell Jr., president and CEO of Industrial Bank NA; George Munoz, partner in the law firm of Tobin, Petkus & Munoz; Raul R. Romero, president and CEO of Alliance Consulting Group, LLC; Rodney E. Slater, partner at Patton Boggs, LLP; and Jarvis C. Stewart, chairman and managing partner of Stewart Partners, LLC.

“If the Lerner family’s dedication to The George Washington University is an example of how they’ll run the Washington Nationals, everyone in the District
of Columbia is in for a treat,” said Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, GW president. “This is a family that knows how to run a world-class business and cares deeply about its community. We are honored to call them alumni and generous benefactors. In fact, the Lerners set a proud example for all members of the GW family who have earned their degrees here, and then, through their philanthropy, added value to the GW experience for future generations. An excellent choice by Major League Baseball—one that will surely bring a winner to Washington.”

The Lerner family ties to GW also include Ted Lerner’s daughter, Marla Lerner Tanenbaum, who is a 1983 GW Law School alumna, and Mark Lerner’s son, Jacob, who will join the GW family this fall as a freshman in the School of Business.

The family’s philanthropy to the University is marked by two buildings bearing the Lerner name. In 2001, through The Annette M. and Theodore N. Lerner Family Foundation, the family contributed $5 million to GW. In recognition of the gift, the University named its new fitness and recreation building The Annette and Theodore Lerner Family Health and Wellness Center. In 1984, the family donated $550,000 for Theodore N. Lerner Hall, which is located on the corner of 20th and H streets, NW, and is part of the GW Law School. According to Forbes magazine, Ted Lerner’s company, Lerner Enterprises, is responsible for building thousands of apartments and single family homes, regional malls, community shopping centers, and more than 20 million square feet of commercial and retail buildings.
So important is his influence that Washingtonian magazine once reported, “Odds are that every adult in Washington has lived, worked, or shopped in a building developed by Ted Lerner...”

Other GW connections to the Nationals include rookie pitcher Mike O’Connor, BBA ’02; GW alumnus and now graduate student Stephen Roche, who is mascot coordinator; and current student Jonathan Kolker, who was a batboy. Additionally,
on May 20 at its Columbian College of Arts and Sciences Celebration, the University awarded an honorary Doctor of Public Service degree to Frank Robinson, manager of the Washington Nationals, in recognition of his successes as a player, manager, and role model. (See Commencement coverage in this issue of ByGeorge!)

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