Daniel A. D’Aniello, a global business icon and leading philanthropist, will be recognized with an honorary degree during Commencement 2020, being celebrated on Sept. 19, 2021.

D’Aniello, a Syracuse University Life Trustee, found success in the international world of business as a pioneer in the private equity industry, and his philanthropic impact has had a broad reach.

His path is one of hard work, determination and service. Raised by a single mother in Butler, Pennsylvania, he attended Syracuse University to study transportation economics. A member of the Beta Gamma Sigma honor society for business scholars and a varsity gymnast, he earned a bachelor’s degree in 1968 from what is now the Martin J. Whitman School of Management.

Drafted in the U.S. Navy in 1968, D’Aniello spent three years serving as a supply officer aboard the USS Wasp (CVS 18). Following his military service, D’Aniello continued his education at Harvard Business School. He received an MBA in 1974 and was also a Teagle Foundation Fellow.

D’Aniello is co-founder and chair emeritus of The Carlyle Group, which has 27 offices across five continents, with $276 billion in assets under management. Prior to forming The Carlyle Group in 1987, he was vice president for finance and development at Marriott Corporation.

As a business leader, D’Aniello has long championed diversity and equity. He led efforts at The Carlyle Group to advance opportunities for women in private equity, leading to more women in senior-level management positions.

In 2016, he received the prestigious Lone Sailor Award from the United States Navy Memorial Foundation. The award honors sea service veterans who have distinguished themselves in their subsequent careers and lives, while exemplifying the core values of honor, courage and commitment.

D’Aniello has given back in meaningful ways in support of many organizations and communities. His philanthropic work is far-reaching, with a focus on education, mental health, the performing arts, veterans, entrepreneurship and faith-based organizations.

At Syracuse University, D’Aniello has supported entrepreneurship in the Whitman School, the Whitman Dean’s fund, the Institute for Veterans and Military Families, the National Veterans Resource Center and various Chancellor’s priorities. He has provided substantial scholarship support to graduate and undergraduate students and contributed to the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities.

In 2018, D’Aniello and his wife Gayle made a transformational $20 million gift in support of the Syracuse University National Veterans Resource Center (NVRC). The Daniel and Gayle D’Aniello Building, home to the NVRC, enables class-leading innovative academic research and programming in support of our nation’s service members, veterans and their families at Syracuse University and around the world.

D’Aniello chairs the board of the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts. He is also chairman of the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, an advisor to the John Templeton Foundation and a founding trustee of the Lumen Institute. His impact also includes sponsoring and funding many programs for the poor and indigent, and programs to care for aging members of the Catholic community of priests and nuns.

In addition to his service to the University’s Board of Trustees, D’Aniello is a member of the Chancellor’s Council, the Whitman Advisory Council and serves as co-chairman of the Institute for Veterans and Military Families advisory board. D’Aniello received the George Arents Award in 2017, the University’s highest alumni honor.

D’Aniello and his wife reside in Virginia. They have two daughters, Dana F. Ziegler ’04 and Bethany D’Aniello.