“Six Years at Bishop’s Changed My World”

“I want to go back to school,” laughs trustee and Board President Doug Arthur ’99. He’s talking about watching his two oldest children, Sally ’30 and Milan ’32, on their Bishop’s journey. “It reminds me how special a place this is,” he says. “I love hearing about their days because it inspires me to think bigger about what we do on a daily basis as adults.” 

To say Arthur’s family is enmeshed in the School is an understatement. His wife, Remley, is class of ’02, plus his sister, Lauren Yates ’01, sisters-in-law, Lindsey Wyman ’05 and Marcy Bull ’00, and brother-in-law, Richard Bull ’97, are all Bishop’s alums. He also has two nieces currently in seventh grade. But while Arthur’s own years at the School may be in the past, the lessons remain very much a part of his daily life. “Six years at Bishop’s completely changed how I viewed the world, the relationships I had, and the interests I developed,” he says. “I gained a positive competitive spirit and a commitment to academic excellence. I left immensely prepared not just for college but professionally, to be a parent, to be a spouse.” 

Bishop’s also left him, as he puts it, “well equipped to be comfortable being uncomfortable” – a skill that he’s found very useful as the CEO of SENTRE, a commercial real estate investment firm.  His work takes him all over the country and the world, often, as he says, “outside of my comfort zone.” He leans into “learning on the job, and being prepared, and being willing to ask questions, while also being empathetic and admitting you don’t know what you don’t know. All those things are part of the Bishop’s experience.”

When the call came to add co-chair of the Lead with Purpose campaign to his responsibilities, Arthur saw it as a grand opportunity to serve the School “not just through contributions of time and money, but also to try to help be an advocate across the community for why this campaign is so important.” He adds, “How could we not give back to the place that made such a transformative investment in me and my wife and our family? We view it as stars aligning.” 

As for the campaign itself, Arthur considers its vision to be unique, with many objectives that are groundbreaking, not just for Bishop’s but for education as a whole. All of those aspects add up to one thing: improving and perpetuating the Bishop’s experience he had when he first arrived on campus decades ago. “I had never been at an academic institution that authentically respected and admired being a well-rounded individual,” he explains. “Bishop’s provides a chance to be around people who are the best in their fields, who speak passionately about what they teach, but who also help you to become a better human being.”