William Macaulay

William E. Macaulay
William E. Macaulay, an energy buy-out pioneer and philanthropist, died on November 26 at the age of 74.
From a modest background in Bronx, he graduated from DeWitt Clinton High School at 16. After graduating from the Baruch School of Business at City College, the City University of New York, in 1966, he earned a Master of Business Administration from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He joined Oppenheimer & Company, the brokerage and financial services firm, where he was a protégé of the hedge fund pioneer Leon Levy.
In 1983, Mr. Macaulay founded First Reserve, building it into one of the largest energy-focused private equity firms. At the helm as Chief Executive until 2015, sharing the title until 2017, and finally as Executive Chairman, he helped build the company into an energy specialist who managed $19.5 billion at its peak. First Reserve raised twenty-one funds during his tenure.
He also served as an advisor to the Blackrock Global Energy & Power Infrastructure Funds (GEPIF), and as a member of their Investment Committee. He was Chairman of the Board of Weatherford, International (NYSE:WFT) a global oilfield service company. He was a former Chairman of the Board of Dresser-Rand and of Dresser, Inc. as well as a former member of the Board of Directors of Glencore, International, and National Oilwell Varco, as well as numerous other public and private companies.
Mr. Macaulay also leaves a significant philanthropic legacy. Grateful for the high-quality, affordable education that he received at the City University, he wanted other bright students without means to have the same opportunity that he had been afforded. In 2006, he and his wife, Linda, endowed the CUNY Honors College, which was renamed the William E. Macaulay Honors College, and purchased a five-story Collegiate Gothic building at 35 West 67th Street in Manhattan for the College's new home. Until his death, he served as the Chairman of the Macaulay Honors College Foundation.
Since 2005, almost 4,800 students have graduated from the Honors College. More than half of them were graduates of New York City public high schools, and about twenty percent were the first in their families to attend college. He and his wife regularly attended commencement.
Mr. Macaulay and his wife also supported the American Museum of Natural History; the Rogosin Institute; and the Macaulay Library at the Cornell University Laboratory of Ornithology. The couple were keen bird watchers whose deep involvement in birdwatching and bird studies have brought them to 147 countries to see 6,625 different species of birds. The Macaulay Family Foundation continues his legacy by supporting conservation and biology; medical research; and higher education.
Mr. Macaulay, who lived in Greenwich, Connecticut, is survived by his wife of fifty-two years, Linda; two daughters and two grandchildren.
A Memorial Service will be held on Saturday January 11 at noon at Christ Church, 254 East Putnam Avenue, Greenwich, CT. In lieu of flowers, please consider supporting the Macaulay Honors College.