Among the latest round of Administration appointments by President Barack Obama announced by The White House Office of the Press Secretary this past Thursday was one of both local and national interest in the world of the performing arts. John D. Goldman, President of the San Francisco Symphony, has been named as a Member of the Advisory Committee on the Arts for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. San Francisco has had a major relationship with the Kennedy Center. The Symphony last performed there in March of 2010; and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music annually contributes a recital to Millennium Stage, a series of free concerts offered at the Kennedy Center in Washington, which take place every day at 6 PM (local time).
John D. Goldman was appointed President of the Symphony in December of 2001 and has been a member of the Symphony’s Board of Governors since 1996. Mr. Goldman was formerly the Chairman of Willis Bay Area, Inc., and the Chief Executive Officer of Goldman Insurance Services. He is the son of the late Richard N. Goldman and the late Rhoda Haas Goldman, influential leaders in the community and international affairs. Prior to joining Goldman Insurance in 1986, he served in the Office of the Legislative Analyst for the State of California from 1975 to 1978, and as Assistant Secretary of Transportation for the State of California from 1978 to 1981.
Active in the community and philanthropic activities, Mr. Goldman was formerly the President of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, Marin, Sonoma Counties, and the Peninsula. He recently completed his terms both as the Chair of the Stanford University Athletic Board and as a member of the Board of Managers of Swarthmore College. He currently serves on the board of I Have A Dream (IHAD) Foundation in East Palo Alto and FACE AIDS, and is a trustee of several family foundations. Other positions include: Member of the Steering Committee and Major Gifts Committee of the Stanford Challenge; Member of the President’s Council of the Coyote Point Center for Environmental Education; Honorary Board Member of Project Open Hand; and Advisory Board Member of the Trust for Public Land. He is a past President of the Board of Jewish Family and Children’s Services, having served as a Board Member of the agency from 1984 to 1996, and is a former Board Member of the Institute on Aging.
A native San Franciscan, Mr. Goldman graduated in 1967 from Lick-Wilmerding High School. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Swarthmore College in 1971 and a Masters in Business Administration from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business in 1975. Mr. Goldman lives on the Peninsula with his wife Marcia and two children.
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