I’ve become convinced that Los Angeles is going to become the next contemporary art capital – no other city has more contemporary gallery space than Los Angeles. We’ve come into our own, finally. – Eli Broad
Charity is just writing checks and not being engaged. Philanthropy, to me, is being engaged, not only with your resources but getting people and yourself really involved and doing things that haven’t been done before. – Eli Broad
I don’t like to spend time in endless meetings talking about stuff that isn’t going to get anything done. I have meetings, but they’re short, prompt and to the point. – Eli Broad
Oprah Winfrey’s global influence is unparalleled. Not only has her generosity and firm belief that education is the key to a better life benefited countless women and children around the world, but her example has also inspired millions of people to give back in ways big and small. – Eli Broad
Teach For America provides one of the most critical pipelines for bringing new talent into public education. – Eli Broad
I think over any period of time, especially if you don’t use leverage, it is difficult to continually beat the S&P 500. – Eli Broad
The first dream I had was just to get a college education. I got through college in three years, taking extra classes in summer school. – Eli Broad
I’ve never been one who enjoys maintaining the status quo. I’m always pushing for new ideas, whether it’s in business or philanthropy. – Eli Broad
The American people frankly have been, over many, many years – to be blunt – fat, dumb and happy. If they want their children to compete with children in India, China or Korea, they better get them a far better education. – Eli Broad
It’s critical that states improve how teachers are trained, recruited, evaluated, compensated, advanced, and retained. – Eli Broad
Most museums – with all their burdens to pay for exhibitions, administration, and security – really don’t have any money really to acquire art, with few exceptions. – Eli Broad
I’m strong-willed. Architects are strong-willed. You get the best results with a strong client and a strong architect working together. – Eli Broad
My wife was the first art collector in the family, and I didn’t become interested until around 1973. The first important artwork we bought was a Van Gogh drawing of two peasant houses in Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer. – Eli Broad
I am old enough to remember when America’s K-12 public schools were the best in the world. I am a proud graduate of them, and I credit much of my success to what I learned in Detroit Public Schools and at Michigan State University. – Eli Broad
As the son of a union activist and a lifelong Democrat, I’ve always thought that privatizing our public schools is not the answer. We must strengthen public schools. – Eli Broad
Los Angeles is such a great meritocracy. Where can someone with my background – don’t have the right family background, the right religion, the right provenance or whatever you want to call it – I come here and I’m accepted. The city’s been good to me. And I want to give back. – Eli Broad
My family and I have been blessed with good fortune in the world of business. We’ve created quite a net worth. My children, two boys, have more money than they will ever need, and they aren’t empire builders. – Eli Broad
If you ask why I do what I do – I want to make a difference. I don’t just want to maintain the status quo. I want to help people, to work with institutions or create ones when they don’t exist. – Eli Broad
If you have poor management that’s not doing the right job, you end up with unions filling the void and… page after page of work rules and thicker and thicker contracts. – Eli Broad
A lot of executives act like their time is worth more than anyone else’s. But I always respect an employee who guards his or her time, even from me. – Eli Broad
School boards are, for the most part,made up of political wannabes who see a board seat as a stepping stone for political office, or well-meaning parents who represent an ethnic group or geography, or have some other narrow interests. Few people on them understand what governance is about. – Eli Broad
Unfortunately, the boards of art institutions tend to be populated with well-meaning supporters of the arts who often lack any business background or appetite for imposing appropriate discipline. – Eli Broad
Frankly, I’m not sure how far I would get if I attended public school today. It’s not just that public schools aren’t producing the results we want – it’s that we’re not giving them what they need to help students achieve at high levels. K-12 education in the United States is deeply antiquated. – Eli Broad
How absurd that our students tuck their cell phones, BlackBerrys, iPads, and iPods into their backpacks when they enter a classroom and pull out a tattered textbook. – Eli Broad
I believe in two things: One, Andrew Carnegie said, ‘He who dies with wealth dies in shame.’ And someone once said, ‘He who gives while he lives also knows where it goes.’ – Eli Broad
To me, unconventional thinking is approaching a problem and asking, ‘Why not? Why can’t something be done?’ If someone can’t give me a good reason why you can’t do something, I find a way to do it. – Eli Broad
