THE LIGHT: From Pearl Street to Purposeful Leadership

Things have never come easy for Donald Ruff. Raised in what he has described as “one of the most notorious housing projects in the country,” he defied the odds—going on to graduate from Brooklyn Friends School and Oberlin College, and ultimately to change the lives of tens of thousands as President and CEO of Eagle Academy.

Of course, Donald’s journey was never a solo ride. Many people played a role in shaping the man he would become. But when everything else is stripped away, there was only one person who refused to let Donald Ruff fail, who would not even entertain the possibility of giving up on him, and who created opportunity after opportunity, even when he tried to sabotage himself. Only one person could truly envision Donald rising beyond the Polo Grounds Towers. That person was his mother, Theo.

“I actually ended up at Brooklyn Friends by accident, to be quite honest,” said Donald, who explained that John Hoffman, the Founder of The Albert G. Oliver Program, an organization, which has placed more than 1,500 African-American and Latino students, from lower income families, into leading private day and boarding schools, as well as colleges, came to his house to speak with Donald and his mother. “I tried to get kicked out of the Oliver program, to be quite honest. You know, I started showing up to school late, I started throwing the exams they were giving us, because I thought they were going to send me away to boarding school. And here is this stranger, who clearly saw something in me that I could not see in myself.”

That led to one of the most important conversations Donald ever had with his number-one advocate—his mom. “I thought my mother was going to beat my ass, right? And she threw me a curve ball, and started crying and asked me what was wrong with me, explaining that she could not afford to send me to private school. I wish she would have hit me. It would have been easier. I said to her, ‘I don’t understand why you’re trying to send me to boarding school, bad kids are the ones who get sent away’. She told me to go back out and tell that to John Hoffman. So I went back out there, and I told John what the situation was. ‘Donnie, we have day school placements’—and that’s actually how I ended up at Brooklyn Friends.”

Accident or not, BFS changed Donald Ruff.

“I didn’t know that I was considered low income, or poor by some standards, until I went to Brooklyn Friends. When you’re growing up low income, you’re around other low income individuals. Every family is looking to survive. … When I went to Brooklyn Friends, it was one of the first times that I actually felt safe. I noticed, ’whoa, people are living differently than I am’. At Brooklyn Friends I had a level of survivor’s guilt, to be quite honest, and survivor’s remorse. Why me? Why did I receive this opportunity? At BFS I found other young people who were like me, who were inquisitive and smart.”

Following his graduation from BFS in 1991, Donald graduated from Oberlin College with a dual Bachelor’s Degree in History and African-American Studies. He also earned two certificates from the Executive Education program for Non-profit Professionals at the Columbia University Graduate School of Business.

After serving in a range of educational leadership roles, Donald was named President and CEO of Eagle Academy in 2022. His career stands as a testament to what purposeful leadership can achieve when it is grounded in service, equity, and long-term vision. At Eagle Academy, Donald has helped steward an institution founded on the belief that young men—particularly those too often underestimated by society—deserve access to excellence, high expectations, and unwavering support.

“I believe God has put me on this Earth to make a difference in my community, and I’ve tried to do that every step of the way,” Donald said, nodding quietly when it is pointed out that he has positively impacted the lives of more than 40,000 young men of color. “So much of what I try to bring to my work is fueled by what I experienced at Brooklyn Friends School.”

This June, at BFS Commencement, things will come full circle for Donald Ruff, who will deliver the Alumni Address and receive the Letting Our Lives Speak Distinguished Alumni Award. Of course, his mom will be there supporting her son, as she always has.

“You know I’m a kid that has been deeply loved. I’ve been poured into, and I simply try to pour out. I’ve seen a lot of things growing up, and I simply want more for my community,” Donald said. “For me, it’s been about how I can stand on my mother’s shoulders. … I stand on the shoulders of my elders, and my ancestors, and I want young people to also stand on my shoulders, as well.”