RWJBarnabas Health names Kathleen Jacobs chief investment officer

West Orange-based RWJBarnabas Health on Monday announced it appointed Kathleen Jacobs to the new role of chief investment officer. Jacobs’ duties of directing the investment strategy for the $8 billion health system will take effect Jan. 9, 2024.

Jacobs will be dedicated to formulating and articulating a strategic vision for RWJBarnabas Health’s investment portfolios that is aligned with the system’s mission, goals and risk tolerance.

She will report to Frank Pipas, RWJBarnabas Health executive vice president and chief financial officer.

“As RWJBarnabas Health continues to grow and establish its ever-increasing role as an anchor institution in New Jersey, Kathleen will help us ensure our longevity and ability to continue increasing access to excellent health care,” Pipas said. “Her background and expertise are uniquely suited to fulfill the needs of this new position, which will evolve over time as our system continues to expand.”

Jacobs’ purview includes RWJBarnabas Health’s Long Term Investment Portfolio, Short Term Capital Reserve Portfolio, Foundation Portfolios and Endowments as well as the system’s ERISA Plan Assets, which include employee retirement plans.

An esteemed investment professional, Jacobs has a proven track record of success, most recently as chief investment officer of New York University, where she led the Investment Office and oversaw all aspects of the university’s endowments for eight years. While at NYU, Jacobs transformed and institutionalized the university endowment and generated strong investment returns significantly exceeding benchmarks. Jacobs also served on the Investment Committee for the NYU and NYU Langone Medical Center retirement plans.

Prior to her role at NYU, Jacobs was a managing director in the Office of Investments at New York-Presbyterian Hospital, where, beginning in 2008, she helped build the hospital’s first Investment Office and maintained a leading role in asset allocation and the selection of fund managers across asset classes. Previous to New York-Presbyterian, Jacobs was senior investor for the Juilliard School’s endowment. For the decade before that, she held investment roles of increasing responsibility at Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan.