The Hoover Institution, Stanford University, announced today that a new endowed fund has been established by Thomas and Barbara Stephenson of Atherton, California. The endowment will support the Thomas and Barbara Stephenson Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution.

Tom Stephenson is a general partner of Sequoia Capital, a leading venture capital firm in Menlo Park, California. Prior to joining Sequoia in 1988, Tom spent 22 years with Fidelity Investments in Boston where he co-founded and ran, for many years, Fidelity Ventures. He is a graduate of Harvard College, Harvard Business School, and Boston College Law School. The Stephensons have been major benefactors of Harvard over the years, and Tom has served the University in a variety of capacities, including as co-chair of its recently completed $2.6 billion campaign. Barbara serves as the president of the Stephenson's family foundation that has focused primarily on education, healthy care and children.

The Stephensons made the endowment with the express purpose that it will be given to a fellow who "shall have achieved stature as one of the most outstanding scholars in his or her field with a demonstrated commitment to research of public policy."

It was also announced that Senior Fellow Condoleezza Rice has been appointed the first Thomas and Barbara Stephenson Senior Fellow.

"Our philanthropic investments follow the same principles applied to our financial investments: a strong organizational framework, individuals of quality, and a sound vision for the future. With Condi Rice and the Hoover Institution we find these attributes in abundance," said the Stephensons. "We are thrilled by this opportunity to support both an institution and an individual who can have a significant, positive impact on an emerging new world."

The Director of the Hoover Institution, John Raisian, said: "We are deeply grateful for the outstanding support of Tom and Barbara Stephenson. They have established a track record of picking winners, and I will strive to make them proud of their decision.

"Condoleezza Rice's impressive international experience, intellectual record, and superb ability to communicate are truly remarkable," Raisian said. "She offers an outstanding background in public policy to the Hoover Institution. Condi is an exceptional talent with clear and forceful ideas."

In acknowledging her appointment, Rice said: "This is a special honor and privilege for which I will be forever grateful. Tom and Barbara Stephenson have, by their own example, set a very high standard. I will work to be worthy of their confidence in me and the Hoover Institution."

Condoleezza Rice previously served as a Hoover senior fellow from 1991 until 1993, when she was appointed provost of Stanford University. Rice held the position of provost for six years, during which time she served as the chief academic and budget officer of the university, before stepping down on July 1, 1999. At that time, she rejoined the Hoover Institution as a senior fellow. She is on a one-year leave of absence from the university, where she is a tenured professor in the political science department. She currently serves as a foreign policy adviser for U.S. presidential candidate George W. Bush on Russian, East European, and national security issues.

Rice first came to Stanford in 1981 as a fellow in the arms control and disarmament program. She was a Hoover Institution national fellow from 1985 until 1986.

Following her initial Hoover Institution affiliation, Rice went to Washington, D.C., to work on nuclear strategic planning at the Joint Chiefs of Staff as part of a Council on Foreign Relations fellowship. She came back to Stanford when the fellowship ended.

Rice returned to Washington in 1989 when she was director of Soviet and East European affairs with the National Security Council. She also was appointed special assistant to the president for national security affairs and senior director for Soviet affairs at the National Security Council under President George Bush. In those roles, she helped bring democratic reforms to Poland, and played a vital role in crafting many of the Bush administration's policies with the former Soviet Union.

Rice's professional activities since returning to Stanford have not been limited to the university. She co-founded the Center for a New Generation, an after-school academy in East Palo Alto, California, and is a corporate board member for Chevron, the Hewlett Foundation, and Charles Schwab. In addition, Rice is a member of J.P. Morgan's international advisory council.

Rice is a Council of Foreign Relations member, a National Endowment for the Humanities trustee, and a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

She has written numerous articles and several books on international relations and foreign affairs, including Germany Unified and Europe Transformed: A Study in Statecraft, with Philip Zelikow (Harvard University Press, 1995).

Rice graduated from the University of Denver with a bachelor's degree in political science (cum laude). She earned a master's degree at the University of Notre Dame and a doctorate from the University of Denver's Graduate School of International Studies. Both of her advanced degrees are also in political science.

overlay image