Valedictorian of the Hampden-Sydney class of 1987, Mr. Citrone graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in economics and mathematics before earning his MBA from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia. An industry-leading hedge fund manager, Mr. Citrone created Fidelity Investment’s Emerging Market Fixed Income and Currency Group and served as managing director and head of global emerging markets at Tiger Management under legendary investor Julian Robertson, Jr. before founding Discovery Capital in 1999. Citrone currently serves on the Hampden-Sydney College Board of Trustees.
Citrone and his wife, Cindy, are actively involved in philanthropy at the College, to which they made a transformative $6 million gift in 2020 to launch Compass, the College's experiential learning initiative, and through the Citrone 33 Foundation based in Pittsburgh. Citrone 33 Foundation initiatives include Play It Forward Pittsburgh, which united the city’s professional sports teams with hospitals and universities to register 1,200 new organ donors, and EMBRACE Pittsburgh, an initiative focused on mental wellness. Parents to four children, Mr. and Mrs. Citrone are the second largest shareholders in the Pittsburgh Steelers football team.
Hampden-Sydney is also thrilled to welcome John Ragosta as its baccalaureate speaker on May 9. Holding both a Ph.D. and a J.D. from the University of Virginia, Dr. Ragosta is a fellow at Virginia Humanities and an award-winning author and frequent commentator
Dr. Ragosta’s most recent book — For the People, For the Country: Patrick Henry’s Final Political Battle — has received highly favorable reviews in the Wall Street Journal and New York Sun. He is also the author of Religious Freedom: Jefferson’s Legacy, America’s Creed and several other works.
Before returning to academia, Dr. Ragosta was an international trade partner at Dewey Ballantine, where he represented clients before the World Trade Organization, NAFTA, U.S. courts, and administrative agencies.