Leonard S. Coleman Jr. (born February 17, 1949) was the last president of the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

. He held the office from 1994 until 1999 when it was eliminated by

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

. He is currently on the Board of Directors of

H. J. Heinz Company The H. J. Heinz Company is an American food processing company headquartered at One PPG Place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company was founded by Henry J. Heinz in 1869. Heinz manufactures thousands of food products in plants on six contin ...

, the

Omnicom Group Omnicom Group Inc. is an American global media, marketing and corporate communications holding company, headquartered in New York City. Omnicom's branded networks and specialty firms provide services in four disciplines: advertising, customer re ...

, Cendant Corporation,

Aramark Aramark Corporation, known commonly as Aramark, is an American food service, facilities, and uniform services provider to clients in areas including education, healthcare, business, prisons, and leisure. It operates in North America (United S ...

, Churchill Downs and

Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted the ...

. He received a

Master of Education The Master of Education (MEd or M.Ed. or Ed.M.; Latin ''Magister Educationis'' or ''Educationis Magister'') is a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. This degree in education often includes the following majors: curriculum a ...

from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a Master of Public Administration from the

John F. Kennedy School of Government The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

Early life and education

Born in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.Montclair, New Jersey Montclair () is a township in Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Situated on the cliffs of the Watchung Mountains, Montclair is a wealthy and diverse commuter town and suburb of New York City within the New York metropolitan area. ...

and attended Montclair High School, where he played baseball and football, earning a selection as a New Jersey All-American halfback during his senior year. He played both sports at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

and became the first black athlete to score a touchdown for the

Princeton Tigers football The Princeton Tigers football program represents Princeton University and competes at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level as a member of the Ivy League. Princeton's footba ...

team but joined two other black players in filing charges that the university had discriminated against them in their opportunities to fairly participate on the football team based on their race, leading to the dismissal of all three players from the team. Coleman graduated from Princeton University in 1971 with a degree in history, then attended Harvard University, where he earned both a master's degree in public administration (MPA) and a master's degree in education and social policy.

Career

A resident of

Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey Atlantic Highlands is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, in the Bayshore Region. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 4,385,New Jersey Department of Community Affairs The New Jersey Department of Community Affairs is a governmental agency of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The department is headed by Commissioner Sheila Oliver, who is also serving as lieutenant governor of New Jersey. Function The NJDCA prov ...

until July 15, 1988, when he left office to enter private industry and was succeeded by Anthony M. Villane. He had also served as commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Energy, and he was chairman of the

Hackensack Meadowlands Development Commission The New Jersey Meadowlands Commission (NJMC; formerly the Hackensack Meadowlands Development Commission) was a regional zoning, planning and regulatory agency in northern New Jersey. Its founding mandates were to protect the delicate balance of n ...

and the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency. While serving as president of the National League, Coleman operated

Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI) is a youth baseball program operated by Major League Baseball. This youth initiative is designed to provide young people from underserved and diverse communities the opportunity to play baseball and softba ...

, forging a working alliance with the

Boys and Girls Clubs of America Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) is a national organization of local chapters which provide voluntary after-school programs for young people. The organization, which holds a congressional charter under Title 36 of the United States Code, h ...

to help grow the RBI program. He also served as chairman of the board of directors of the

Jackie Robinson Foundation The Jackie Robinson Foundation is a national, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, which gives scholarships to minority youths for higher education, as well as preserves the legacy of Baseball Hall of Fame member Jackie Robinson. The foundation ...

for 18 years. As of September 2016, Coleman is reported to own shares in Aramark, Avis Budget Group, Electronic Arts, and Omnicom Group with the total value of US$5.3 million.

External links

Sports Encyclopedia Biography

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coleman, Leonard S. Jr. 1949 births Living people Baseball players from Newark, New Jersey Churchill Downs executives Commissioners of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs Harvard Graduate School of Education alumni Harvard Kennedy School alumni Montclair High School (New Jersey) alumni National League presidents People from Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey People from Montclair, New Jersey Players of American football from Newark, New Jersey Princeton Tigers baseball players Princeton Tigers football players