It’s
been a few weeks since Markets Group broke the story about Kathleen Jacobs, who
achieved some of the highest portfolio returns in the industry this year, and
then quit
her chief investment officer role at NYU on Sept 29. Investors have been
watching to see where the talented CIO would resurface. On Nov. 20, RWJBarnabas
Health, the largest academic health care system in New Jersey, announced that
Jacobs will become its new CIO on January 9. In her new role, she will formulate,
articulate and direct the investment strategy of the $8 billion health system
and keep it aligned to its mission, goals, and risk tolerance.
Jacobs’
purview will include RWJBarnabas Health’s Long Term Investment Portfolio, Short
Term Capital Reserve Portfolio, Foundation Portfolios and Endowments as well as
the system’s ERISA Plan Assets, which include employee retirement plans, and
she will report to Frank Pipas, RWJBarnabas Health Executive Vice President and
Chief Financial Officer.
“As RWJBarnabas Health continues
to grow and establish its ever-increasing role as an anchor institution in New
Jersey, Kathleen will help us ensure our longevity and ability to continue
increasing access to excellent health care,” said Pipas in a written release.
“Her background and expertise are uniquely suited to fulfill the needs of this
new position, which will evolve over time as our system continues to expand.”
When she was CIO of New York
University, Jacobs led the Investment Office and oversaw all aspects of the
University’s $5.9 billion endowment for eight years, beating benchmarks and ending
her tenure at 11.5% for the June fiscal year — what one endowment CIO source described as “the
highest June fiscal return for any large endowment” this year. The endowment
median return for fiscal year 2023 was
7%.
Jacobs also served on the Investment
Committee for the NYU and NYU Langone Medical Center retirement plans. Before
that, she was a managing director in the Office of Investments at
NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, where, beginning in 2008, she helped build the
hospital’s first investment office and maintained a leading role in asset
allocation and the selection of fund managers across asset classes. Previous to
NewYork-Presbyterian, Ms. Jacobs was Senior Investor for the Juilliard School’s
endowment. For the decade before that, she held investment roles of increasing
responsibility at Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan.
Ms.
Jacobs graduated magna cum laude from Bucknell University with a Bachelor of
Science in Business Administration.
By Christine Giordano
Related story:
Scoop of the Week: New York University’s Chief Investment
Officer Leaves
