Butler building named after Yoseloff ’96, wife

Building A in Butler College has been named Yoseloff Hall following a gift from investment professional Anthony Yoseloff ’96 and his wife, Nanar, late last year, the University announced on Wednesday. Anthony Yoseloff declined to provide information about the amount of the contribution.

Building D is now the only building in the residential college that has not been named for either an individual donor or a class.

“The only way you are going to be able to maintain universities like Princeton is through fundraising,” Yoseloff said. “I had an incredible experience at Princeton, and ... we were very impressed by how the school has managed to grow and take additional students in the last 10 years or so.”

The Wythes Committee, a group of trustees and administrators charged with considering long-term strategic issues for the University, recommended the expansion of the total undergraduate student body from 4,600 to 5,100 in January 2000. The University coupled this initiative with the conversion of Mathey College, Whitman College and Butler into four-year residential colleges.

The reconstruction of Butler, which began in 2007 and finished in time to house students beginning in fall 2009, marked the last period of the transition. A total of 62 undergraduates currently live in Yoseloff Hall.

Yoseloff described his time as a student at the University, which ended just 15 years ago, as highly formative. He lived in Mathey College and was a member of the Mathey College Council and Tower Club.

“One of the things that struck me about my experience at Princeton … is that there is so much you learn from your fellow students outside the classroom,” he said. “There are other schools where it’s more of a commuter experience and people live off campus. Princeton is not like that.”

Ben Dahl ’96, who was Yoseloff’s roommate during their senior year, emphasized Yoseloff’s connection to their classmates even today.

“I know Tony appreciates the lifelong friendships that he developed while he was there,” Dahl said. “He still connects with and is connected to a huge swath of the class that we graduated with, and not just on a casual basis. He really makes an effort to maintain friendships among the people that he shared dorms with or lived down the hall from or ate meals with.”

“That’s, I think, one of the things that ... you appreciate more as an undergrad,” Dahl added.

Christine Whelan ’99, who has known Yoseloff since 1996, described him and his wife as an “inspiration” because of their dedication and generosity to educational institutions.

Yoseloff is currently on the National Board of Directors of DonorsChoose.org, an organization that matches public school classes in need with potential donors online.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

“[Yoseloff] and his wife Nanar are really dedicated to educational charities and have given back within the private sector and done so so early,” Whelan said. “He’s so generous with his time and money. He’s a true Tiger in that respect.”

Yoseloff has also taken an active role in Aspire, the University’s current fundraising campaign to raise $1.75 billion. He is a member of the campaign’s executive committee and a co-chair for the New York Metro region.

He and his wife last made a major donation to the University in 2006 to name the Anthony and Nanar Yoseloff Master’s Suite in Whitman.

Master of Whitman College Harvey Rosen said in an e-mail that Yoseloff was someone who particularly valued the quality of undergraduates’ experiences at the University.

“Gifts of this kind provide the infrastructure that is necessary to achieve the goal of integrating academic and residential life at Princeton,” Rosen said.