Horace Mann - Summer 2016 - 23

News of the School Alumnus, Parent, and Dedicated HM Community Member A graduate of the HM Class of 1975 Michael Colacino was elected Chair of the Horace Mann School Board of Trustees in May 2015, as previous Board Chair Steven M. Friedman '72 had announced that he would end his term of office on June 30, 2015. The date marked the culmination of Friedman's nine years of service to HM in this role, and a prior decade of service as a Board of Trustees member, committee chair, and vice chair. A dedicated member of the Horace Mann School community Colacino has noted, particularly in his fall 2015 State of the School address to the HM parent body, that he accepted the Board Chair position not simply out of a sense of responsibility, but because of his desire to serve Horace Mann School "in the most complete capacity." Recalling the deliberation that went into his decision to accept the position Colacino explained, "I'm kind of an analytic person, so when I was thinking about it I did a list of pros and cons, as you are taught to do in business school. There were a lot of them, in both categories. I have to say, being Board Chair is a difficult job. There's a lot of work and it's a big challenge." However, Colacino said he had realized that most of the reasons that "fell out on the pro side" were about things he "could do whether as Board Chair or as a Board member, as long as I continued to be present and participate" in and with the HM community. "I kept coming back to the idea that I really wanted to be the Chairman of the Board," Colacino said. "I couldn't quite put my finger on why that was, and then it struck me: I realized that it is just an incredible privilege to be asked to lead a school like this, a school that has defined me, supported me and helped make me the person that I am. The most important thing about me is that I am someone who cares very, very much about the school." For Horace Mann Head of School Dr. Tom Kelly, Colacino's devotion to HM defines the quality of the Board Chair's commitment to the school. "I've worked with Michael in the past, and we have now worked together in his role as Board Chair for a year. The care he takes in considering any aspect of Horace Mann School life is abundantly clear," Dr. Kelly said. "To that care Michael adds his very thoughtful and incisive way of approaching each question before us, and seeing all sides of a situation, to inevitably come up with a solution that is always in the very best interest of the school and its students. I look forward to working with him in the years ahead." An alumnus active in shaping New York and its future Outside of his work on behalf of Horace Mann School Michael Colacino serves as president of Savills Studley, a global commercial real estate services firm specializing in tenant representation, largely in the office sector. Colacino began his career in 1981, and had various software engineering jobs before becoming president of Design Technologies, from 1987 to 1991. In 1991 he began working at the company then known as Studley, and moved through various management and directorial positions before becoming president in 2002. The New York-based company merged with Savills of London in 2014, expanding both companies' international presence. Specializing in Fortune 500, not-for-profit, financial and legal companies Colacino has also served as a consultant, strategic planner and provider of specialized brokerage services. His work has made a major impact on the city of New York, among other cities. One very visible effort involved Colacino's work as project executive on Time Warner's move into Columbus Circle in 2004. As noted in a November 2015 New York Times article Colacino served as "the main guy" on the company's planned move to Hudson Yards. Michael Colacino is also on the Real Estate Board of New York's (REBNY) Board of Governors and the Advisory Board of the Zell-Lurie Real Estate Center at Wharton, at the University of Pennsylvania. A member of the Harvard College class of 1979 Colacino is active in the Harvard Real Estate Academic Initiative. He has been on the faculty of New York University, where he earned his M.S. in Real Estate, graduating first in a class of 180. In 2008 Colacino received the NYU Real Estate Institute's Distinguished Alumni Award. He has also studied operations research and statistics at the graduate level at NYU's Stern School. He has been published in Industrial Engineering, Real Estate Forum and Real Estate Review, served as a Trustee of the International Center of Photography from 2006-2011. In 2012 he was honored by the Harlem Educational Activities Fund. Considering Horace Mann School today The Board Chair finds much to praise in the state of Horace Mann School today, from the strength of its diverse, dedicated, intellectually gifted and highly-qualified faculty and its increasingly more diverse student body, to the situation concerning admissions "both in terms of students entering Horace Mann School, and how students fare in their admissions to college upon graduating from HM," he said. "One of the most important things (for Horace Mann School) is admitting great kids," Colacino said. "Without that beginning, without that starting point, we don't really have much of anything." Colacino commends HM's College Counseling Department for helping students "land the best way possible as they leave the school" through the Department's efforts to "broaden the field of colleges and universities students are applying to, by introducing new possibilities for students and families to consider, in addition to the colleges to which HM students traditionally apply." Colacino also notes with appreciation how "well HM students, at all scholastic achievement levels, fare in the college process." Safety is a primary concern for Horace Mann School, as it is for every parent with a child at the school, as Colacino well understands. Consulting with Dr. Kelly and with HM Director of Security Michael McCaw, Colacino keeps up-to-date with the "ongoing, continuous process the school undertakes to enhance security," he said. Recent changes during his time as Board Chair include installing more cameras throughout the campus, and the installation of an external PA system. "We've also improved radio communication with the Nursery Division (in Manhattan) and with Dorr (HM's John Dorr Nature Laboratory in Washington, Conn.)," Colacino said. He lauds Horace Mann School's decision to employ former high-ranking NYPD detectives to lead HM's security department, which speaks to their expertise and helps HM forge a strong cooperative relationship with the City's nearby police departments. Looking toward HM's future For Michael Colacino the role of the Horace Mann School Board of Trustees is "to provide advice and counsel to Dr. Kelly and the administration." In addition, the Board has "responsibility for the overall capital and financial climate of the school." Colacino has said. "Tom runs the school, as he has for the last ten years, and he is going to keep doing what he has been doing at least for the next five years, and hopefully beyond," Colacino remarked last October to those gathered for the State of the School address. HM's future, as Colacino sees it, involves "doing what Horace Mann School has always done well ... in terms of providing students with an Horace Mann Magazine Summer 2016 23

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