Alvin N. Puryear, PhD

Dr. Puryear was Valedictorian of the Class of 1955 and, as a member of three varsity teams, was awarded nine letters, a record at the time.

Dr. Puryear received a BA Degree from Yale University where he was a two-way tackle on the football team and a Ranking Scholar in Sociology. He received MBA and PhD degrees from Columbia University where he was both a Samuel Bronfman Fellow and a John Hay Whitney Fellow.

Until 2007, Dr. Puryear was the Lawrence N. Field Professor of Entrepreneurship and Professor of Management at Baruch College of the City University of New York.

During leaves-of-absence from Baruch College, Dr. Puryear served as a Vice-President of the Ford Foundation and First Deputy Comptroller of the City of New York.