Tax Policy Center Establishes the Pozen Director’s Chair

WASHINGTON, DC, May 5, 2015—Urban Institute President Sarah Rosen Wartell and Brookings Institution President Strobe Talbott today announced the establishment of the Pozen Director’s Chair at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center (TPC). The chair is made possible through an endowment gift from American financial executive Robert C. Pozen.

The center’s director, Leonard E. Burman, will be the inaugural holder of the Pozen Director’s Chair.

“I am honored to be named to the Pozen Chair. Bob Pozen is widely respected as a leader in finance and public policy, and his intellectual and financial support are tremendous assets for the Tax Policy Center,” Burman said. “Bob’s transformative gift will provide the center with a sustainable source of support for generations to come. He is empowering me and my successors to lead TPC in exciting new directions on policies that matter.”

“Bob Pozen’s gift to the Tax Policy Center is an important and timely investment,” said Brookings’s Strobe Talbott. “There are critical opportunities to improve tax policy right now, and tax reform issues aren’t going away. The durable funding provided by the Pozen Director’s Chair gives the TPC team the resources to make a real impact. This gift is also unique in how it supports two institutions. The center is a rare example of collaboration in Washington and, I hope, serves as a model for research organizations working together on finding solutions to national challenges. We’re grateful to Bob for his generosity and vision.”

The Tax Policy Center was founded in 2002 as a joint venture of the Urban Institute and the Brookings Institution. It is comprised of nationally recognized experts in tax, budget, and social policy, many of whom have served at the highest levels of government. The center provides independent analyses of current and longer-term tax issues and communicates its analyses to the public and to policymakers in a timely and accessible manner. Pozen’s gift marks the first major endowment contribution to the center.

Robert C. Pozen is currently senior lecturer at the Harvard Business School and is a visiting senior lecturer at the MIT Sloan School of Management.  From 2004 to 2010, Pozen was executive chairman of MFS Investment Management. In 2002 and 2003, he was the John Olin Visiting Professor at Harvard Law School. From 2001 to 2002, Pozen served on the President’s Commission to Strengthen Social Security. He also served as secretary of economic affairs for Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. Before 2001, he was vice chairman of Fidelity Investments and president of Fidelity Management & Research Co.

“I am glad to support such a great institution,” Pozen said. “The Tax Policy Center is one of the few American organizations that consistently provides nonpartisan and thoughtful analysis of current tax issues.”   

“Bob Pozen has had an impressive career as an investment industry executive, public servant, and prolific author,” said Urban’s Sarah Rosen Wartell.  “Throughout, he has demonstrated keen interest in and provided powerful insights into public policy. The Urban Institute is grateful for Bob’s generous support and honored to receive this endowment gift.  The Tax Policy Center is a consistent source of independent, nonpartisan analysis of tax policy and a model of cross-think tank collaboration. The Pozen gift helps to ensure the long-term sustainability of this national treasure.”  

The Brookings Institution is a nonprofit public policy organization based in Washington, DC. Founded in 1916, Brookings’s mission is to conduct high-quality, independent research and, based on that research, to provide innovative, practical recommendations that advance three broad goals: strengthening American democracy; fostering the economic and social welfare, security and opportunity of all Americans; and securing a more open, safe, prosperous and cooperative international system.

The nonprofit Urban Institute is dedicated to elevating the debate on social and economic policy. For nearly five decades, Urban scholars have conducted research and offered evidence-based solutions that improve lives and strengthen communities across a rapidly urbanizing world. Their objective research helps expand opportunities for all, reduce hardship among the most vulnerable, and strengthen the effectiveness of the public sector.