Mike Milken
Michael Milken has been at the forefront of successful initiatives in medical research, education, public health and access to capital for more than five decades. Fortune called him “The Man Who Changed Medicine” and Forbes listed him among “Visionaries Reimagining Our Children’s Future.” In 1982 he formalized his philanthropy by co-founding the Milken Family Foundation which has worked closely with more than 1,000 organizations around the world. The Foundation’s most acclaimed program, the Milken Educator Awards, was established in 1985 and is the largest teacher-recognition program in the United States. Dubbed the “Oscars of Teaching” by Teacher magazine, it has awarded tens of millions of dollars to honor thousands of K-12 teachers and principals.
In 1993, he founded the Milken Institute, which hosts more than 250 events annually, including major conferences in the Middle East, Singapore, Japan, New York, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.; the Institute’s Global Conference, which draws more than 5,000 attendees from more than 60 nations annually, has been hosted in Los Angeles since 1998.
Mike also chairs FasterCures, which speeds progress against all life-threatening diseases, as well as the Prostate Cancer Foundation, the world’s largest private funder of prostate cancer research. He is a co-founder of the Melanoma Research Alliance, and the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University offers 30 degree options. His latest book, Faster Cures: Accelerating the Future of Health, chronicles his personal journey and progress in medical research and public health over the past half century.
Mike’s latest initiative, the Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream (MCAAD) supports the idea that anyone with a dream and the drive to achieve it should have the opportunity to make it come true – through good health, good education and access to capital. Its mission is to educate, inspire and illuminate pathways for those seeking their American Dream. Housed in several historic buildings directly across the street from the White House and the Treasury in Washington, D.C., the Center will open its doors in 2025.
As a financier, Mike revolutionized modern capital markets by pricing and rewarding risk more efficiently. The thousands of companies he financed created millions of jobs, including much of the early growth of cable television, homebuilding, cellular phones and other industries. A Washington Post column said Milken “helped create the conditions for America's explosion of wealth and creativity” in the late 20th century, a process that BusinessWeek said, “shook America's defeatist establishment out of its gloom.”
A graduate of Berkeley, he earned his M.B.A. at the Wharton School. He and his wife Lori have been married since 1968 and are members of the Giving Pledge. They have three children and 10 grandchildren. www.mikemilken.com.