Paul Karlitz
For Paul Karlitz ’93, a political science degree based in the liberal arts was just what he needed to succeed academically and in many life aspects afterwards.
“Liberal arts was great for me because it wasn’t too narrowly focused or specialized,” Karlitz says. “It allowed me to be open to many different disciplines and thought processes.”
He recalls how Syracuse was a great place for him academically but also a place to surround himself with a diverse group of people.
A liberal arts education promotes searching for and examining other points of view—something Karlitz says “is extremely valuable in all phases of life.”
He relates it to a phrase offered by a colleague of his: Seek to understand. “I know she stole it from somewhere else, but I still give her credit for it in my life,” Karlitz says.
Karlitz, who was born and raised in New York City, is a senior managing director of Lenox Advisors, a national wealth advisory firm. He was located at the firm’s New York headquarters for eight years before heading to the West Coast in 2014 to oversee its Los Angeles and San Francisco offices.
“My role is to grow our presence by adding experienced financial professionals to our team and increasing our firm’s footprint on the West Coast,” Karlitz says.
Karlitz is also active in bringing recognition to organizations that have great meaning for him. He and his wife, Jeannie, are involved with the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA). “Both of our children—Lane, 15, and Jackson, 12—have juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA), and CARRA is at the forefront of research and awareness for JRA,” Karlitz says.
Karlitz also supports the work of Covenant House, an organization that assists at-risk homeless youth with opportunities to help them off the streets. With the help of Lenox Advisors, more than $200,000 has been raised through fundraising events and awareness initiatives over the past few years.
“Each of the past two years, our largest fundraising event has been the Lenox Advisors-Covenant House National Sleep Out, where my colleagues and I spend a night sleeping on the streets in New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles to raise funds and awareness for Covenant House and to end the plight of homeless youth,” Karlitz says.
The lessons learned at Syracuse, including the importance of continually challenging himself, have stayed with him and are in all the work that Karlitz is involved with today.
“The classes and professors at the College of Arts and Sciences were exciting and challenging, which is a great combination for young people trying to figure out who they are and what they are capable of becoming after college,” says Karlitz, who was also a member of the fraternity Sigma Alphu Mu while at Syracuse.
“The environment was encouraging, but not coddling, and always challenged you to be the best you can be. I’ve tried to re-create this mindset both at home with my two sons and at work with my colleagues,” he says.
