Royce Flippin '56

Royce Flippin Jr. '56 has molded his life around the basic principle of helping meet the needs of others. From leading a consulting firm, working with the University and even as warden for his local church, this idea is reflected in every path Flippin has pursued. "The most rewarding thing in life is being in a position to be able to meet needs," Flippin explained.

His interest in consultation and the financial sector stems from his experience at Princeton where he majored in Economics and Sociology. Beyond the classroom, Flippin spent four years on both the baseball and football team. As captain in his senior year, he led the team to Princeton's last Ivy championship win before the league was officially formed. After Princeton, Flippin went into the nation's service, joining the Marine Corps.

From there Flippin worked at Exxon for four years and was in charge of running an area of service stations. Exxon awarded him with a scholarship for Harvard Business School where he graduated with an MBA in 1964.

Leading the teams

After his formal education, Flippin went on to serve as director of athletics at Princeton. His work here occurred at a pivotal point of the University's History. "I worked at the University during the 1970s when Princeton had just began to accept women students," Flippin said. "I was involved with developing women athletics at Princeton and we actually dominated the Ivy League during those initial years."

Eventually he left Princeton for a post at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he was director of both athletics and program advancement. Flippin's experience at MIT eventually led him to become president of the Eastern College Athletic Conference and he also served on the National Collegiate Athletics Association.

On to finance

While at MIT, Flippin became involved in financial consulting and worked with companies as well as individuals. "I formed Flippin Associates just to formalize that outreach," Flippin said. The broad-based consulting firm covers both the public and private sector and has since been relocated to New Jersey, after Flippin left MIT to be closer to family.

The idea of meeting others' needs is central in this line of work, Flippin explained. "The principle goal of consultants is to really meet the needs of their client," Flippin said. "You have to get a sense of what's needed through individual counseling, consoling and group experience."

Today, Flippin serves on four different corporate boards, providing valuable advice for business operations. For 17 years he has been involved with Arial Mutual Funds, now ranked as one of the most remarkable mutual funds in the nation and has over $10 billion in assets. He is also on the boards of the Princeton Club, the Education and Video Conferencing Inc. and Thorium Power.

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His involvement with Thorium Power came after a meeting with a fellow alumni in the early 1990s. "I asked him what else he was working on and he mentioned a start up company that had patents on a type of nuclear fuel that could only be used for non-proliferated purposes," Flippin said.

His interest in the corporation led to a meeting with the founder and eventually an invitation to become a board member. From 1995 to 1997, he was chairman of Thorium Power which is now up for consideration by the national government for federal funding.

'Serendipity'

While his intellect and drive helped him seize these opportunities, Flippin realizes how fortunate he was to have these door open up for him. "It was through serendipity that I was able to have a lot of these opportunities," Flippin said.

Besides his role in the financial sector, Flippin has also stayed involved in the field of education. He is currently board member of the Lakewood Preparatory School in Hopewell, N.J., where his grandson attends.

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In addition, he stays strongly connected with his alma mater. "After going to Princeton in the 50s, working there in the 70s, seeing my sons go there in the 80s, I have a real sense for Princeton," Flippin said.

Flippin's appreciation and commitment to the University is reflected in his numerous positions on Alumni committees. Flippin is on the Board of Governors of the Princeton Club, vice president of University Relations and Alumni Association around the greater New York area, Executive Committee of the Class 1956 and the '56 Reach Out Committee.

His interest in providing assistance to others is further evident in his work as warden for his Episcopal Church, St. George's in Halmetta, New Jersey. Flippin is also active in the interfaith network, Care, an association of 12 churches that work together to transport people to medical appointments that they would otherwise have been unable to go.

Transitioning between the various fields is not difficult for Flippin because the skills needed for each share a fundamental similarity. "Whether its athletics at Princeton or my work for Flippin Associates or Thorium Power, the principles of meeting needs don't really vary much."