Baruch College President S. David Wu Honored on City & State’s “50 Over 50 Alumni” List

May 14, 2025

City & State is celebrating a decade of its “50 Over 50” lists, which honor outstanding New Yorkers over the age of 50 who have made significant contributions in academia, advocacy, business, government, organized labor, and other fields.

This year, City & State is highlighting the continued achievements and impacts of past honorees, selecting Baruch College President S. David Wu among 50 leaders from a pool of 500 previous recipients. Notably, President Wu and CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez are the only honorees on the list representing higher education.

In 2023, President Wu was named a Lifetime Achievement Honoree by the organization.

In its profile of President Wu, City & State points to an increase in applications to Baruch amid challenges in the higher education sector.

“What I have learned is that the core purpose of education is to provide opportunities to as many young people as possible, to offer them the opportunity to have a fulfilling life, to have a successful career and to have the foundation to succeed,” Wu says. “That’s what we are focusing on at Baruch.”

City & State notes this approach “has garnered recognition from Bloomberg Philanthropies and the Aspen Institute, which designated Baruch as an American Talent Initiative High-Flier for its high graduation rate and its many low-income students.”

The profile continues: “The Manhattan institution has some exciting developments underway, including a new 120,000-square-foot building at 63 Madison Ave. that will house classrooms and offices, a $250 million capital project to renovate 14 floors of Baruch’s historic building at 14 Lexington Ave. and an artificial intelligence hub to help students adapt to an artificial intelligence job market.”

Baruch’s North Star

“Having this student-centric approach, everything we do is for the benefit of our students,” Wu says. “Remembering what our mission is and who we’re here to serve is probably most important. I think that’s our North Star, and that certainly keeps me grounded.”

Leadership and Influence

President Wu has secured the following awards from City & State within the last year:

• “Manhattan Power 100” list
• “Power of Diversity: Asian 100” list

Connect with President Wu

Learn more about President Wu and his initiatives for Baruch College here.

Subscribe to President Wu’s blog, follow him on X @DavidWuBaruch, and connect with him on LinkedIn.

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