Harvard: #1 in billionaire alums

The Top Billionaire Universities

No. 1 Harvard University

Number of billionaire alumni: 54

Harvard has churned out more 10-figure titans than any other school on the planet (counting both undergraduate and graduate degrees). The school's roster of billionaire alumni includes Michael Bloomberg, Sumner Redstone, David Rockefeller, Sr. and William Randolph Hearst III.

No. 2 Stanford University

Number of billionaire alumni: 25
Stanford has the second-highest number of billionaire grads in the world, including Charles Schwab. Still, the Harvard of the West is probably better known for its billionaire dropouts. Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page earned master's degrees in computer science from Stanford before leaving Stanford doctorate programs to start the famously profitable search engine. Another (very rich) quitter: Microsoft Chief Exec Steve Ballmer.

No. 3 University of Pennsylvania

Number of billionaire alumni: 18
Early last year, U. Penn had 27 billionaire graduates, thanks to its famous business school, Wharton. But the financial meltdown last year shaved off almost a third of that list, including hedge fund tycoon Peter Briger Jr. and money maven Marc Rowan. Amongst the school's remaining billionaire grads: Ronald and Leonard Lauder, and Michael Milken.

No. 4 Columbia University (tie)

Number of billionaire alumni: 16
Amongst Columbia's grads is affable billionaire Warren Buffett, the world's second-richest man. While studying in New York (class of 1951), the Berkshire Hathaway chief learned from value-investing legend Benjamin Graham. Other rich alum: Wal-Mart Chairman S. Robson Walton and Henry Kravis.

No. 4 Yale University (tie)

Number of billionaire alumni: 16
Yale is alma mater to a slew of billionaire clans, including the Mars chocolate fortune (Forrest Mars Jr. and John Mars) and Cargill agricultural fortune (Cargill MacMillan Jr. and Whitney MacMillan). Investor Eddie Lampert and Blackstone Group co-founder Stephen Schwarzman also graduated from Yale; both were members of the infamous secret society Skull & Bones.

Forbes article

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Just Say No! to disingenuous philanthropy from Billionaires!!!

There's been a number of recently publicized large gifts to major universities in this country. Columbia and the University of Texas have been some of the beneficiaries.

John W. Kluge, an alumnus of Columbia, has donated $400 million to Columbia University.

T. Boone Pickens has donated $100 million to the University of Texas.

Both Mr. Kluge and Mr. Pickens are well known billionaires.

However, there's been a development. During this season of charitable giving and good will some questions have been raised.

Ann Bartow, Walter Kimbrough and others are among those who have raised some questions. They may have a better idea. It appears a (possible) message to this group of philanthropic billionaires is: we don’t need your money. Or possibly, they might offer that “we have a better idea on how these educational gifts should be allocated.” Or, still better, just give it to us and we will distribute the funds so that the greater good is equitably achieved.

Ann M. Bartow is an Associate Professor of Law at the University of South Carolina School of Law and leader of the Feminist Law Professors blog.

Walter M. Kimbrough is the president of Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Ann, on her blog, has posted a major excerpt of a recent article written by Walter M. Kimbrough endorsing this new economic approach to personal philanthropy.

Walter writes that he tired of the old, care-free philanthropic approach and flatly states: “I am becoming less and less tolerant of people who pass wealth on to the privileged and masquerade it as philanthropy.” He adds, “This simply extends the gross inequities that exist in our country — inequities that one day will come home to roost.”

Ann entitles her blog excerpt of the article: "And The Rich Get Richer."

Walter finally adds: “Our political leaders must begin to challenge the wealthy to practice real philanthropy."

Our researchers reviewed Walter and Ann’s respective backgrounds and could find no supporting evidence for any professional work done in clinical psychology which would support their abilities to discern the difference between real and fake philanthropy.

So, there you have it. A new political solution to personal philanthropy is what is needed according to Walter and Ann. Write your congresspeople.

Call us old-school but we at Think Billion$ prefer the current free-market solution. Let's all get wealthy together and exercise free economic choice (while we're still allowed to).

related::: Philander Smith must repay $477,029 to feds