Lawrence B. Benenson

Lawrence B. BenensonLawrence B. Benenson joined The Benenson Capital Company in 1990, and is currently a partner and member of the company's Executive Management and Investment Committee. Mr. Benenson's responsibilities include influencing the development and implementation of the firm's investment strategies and managing internal operations. His leadership is key in the realization of the The Benenson Capital Company's immediate and long-range plans, including bolstering its holdings as the nation's premier owner of netleased properties.

Prior to joining The Benenson Capital Company, now Benenson Capital Partners, he worked for Rose Associates, a real estate investment and development firm focused on Manhattan property. He is a member of the Real Estate Board of New York and the International Council of Shopping Centers. An active participant in charitable and educational institutions, Mr. Benenson is currently a member of the board of the Mosholu Montefiore Community Center in the Bronx, the Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke University, the SUNY Purchase College Foundation, the ART/OMI International Arts Center, and the Center for Arts in Education. Mr. Benenson holds a BA in English from Duke University.

Member of the Cooper Union Board since 2004

Term ends: 2016

  • Founded by inventor, industrialist and philanthropist Peter Cooper in 1859, The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art offers education in art, architecture and engineering, as well as courses in the humanities and social sciences.

  • “My feelings, my desires, my hopes, embrace humanity throughout the world,” Peter Cooper proclaimed in a speech in 1853. He looked forward to a time when, “knowledge shall cover the earth as waters cover the great deep.”

  • From its beginnings, Cooper Union was a unique institution, dedicated to founder Peter Cooper's proposition that education is the key not only to personal prosperity but to civic virtue and harmony.

  • Peter Cooper wanted his graduates to acquire the technical mastery and entrepreneurial skills, enrich their intellects and spark their creativity, and develop a sense of social justice that would translate into action.