Helmsley Trust CIO Hewsenian
SUNY Commencement Speaker
ONEONTA – SUNY Oneonta alumna Rosalind “Roz” M. Hewsenian, chief investment officer for The Helmsley Trust, will return to her alma mater to receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree at SUNY Oneonta’s 128th commencement Saturday, May 13.
A member of the Class of 1975, Hewsenian came to SUNY Oneonta as a first-generation college student pursuing a degree in elementary education. She attended Pace University, receiving an MBA in finance in 1979.
She began her career as a financial analyst for Kraft General Foods but quickly rose to a position managing employee benefit assets at PepsiCo’s treasury office. She made a name for herself at Wilshire Associates, a leading global investment management firm, where she served as managing director and principal as well as senior consultant. She was lead consultant to the $225.6 billion California Public Employees’ Retirement System as well as to other state and municipal pension funds.
Since 2011, she has been chief investment officer at The Helmsley Trust, transitioning its high-net-worth capital into a grant-making charitable foundation supporting medical research, conservation and education initiatives. She has also used her knowledge and money management skills to help improve the human condition with organizations such as the More Than Shelter Fund and PLAN of California Special Needs.
Hewsenian is a longtime supporter of several health-related nonprofits, and she has endowed three scholarships for SUNY Oneonta students. As a participant in the college’s Distinguished Alumni Lecture Series, she shared her expertise with education and business students. In 2014, the SUNY Oneonta Alumni Association named her to its Alumni of Distinction roster.
