Peter J. Tobin has defined what it is to strive for success. The
son of Irish immigrant parents, he enrolled as an accounting major
in the College of Business Administration with the help of a full
tuition scholarship from St. John's University through his local
parish. Graduating with a Bachelor of Business Administration
degree, he had also been trained by St. John's in the Vincentian
tradition, with an emphasis for compassion and a zeal for service.
It was an impression that would never leave him; in fact, it would
serve as his personal code throughout his life.
Mr. Tobin embarked on his business career at the accounting firm
of Peat, Marwick, Mitchell, and later moved to the banking industry
at Manufacturer's Hanover Trust. It was the start of a 25-year
journey, which would culminate in his appointment as Chief
Financial Officer of the JP Morgan Chase organization. As
CFO, Mr. Tobin was a member of the corporation's Policy Council and
had responsibility for corporate treasury, controllership,
financial management information systems, investor relations,
management analysis and corporate strategy. In the quarter-century
since he graduated from St. John's, Peter Tobin became one of the
most sought after banking professionals in the world.
Shortly after his retirement from JP Morgan Chase, Mr. Tobin
became Dean of what was then the College of Business Administration
at St. John’s University. Recognizing early on the resources
needed to advance the College, Peter and his wife Mary donated
$10.25 million dollars to the College. In the summer of 2000,
the University’s Board of Trustees voted to name the College for
Mr. Tobin, in recognition not only of his and his wife’s generous
financial gift, but his loyalty and dedication to the College and
St. John’s over many years. Both Peter and Mary Tobin remain
deeply involved in the College, with Peter serving currently as
Chair of its Board of Advisors.