On April 17, Rick Cimino's 7th grade study skills class welcomed Paul Nolle '07 to the new Middle School Alumni Speakers Series.  After a brief introduction, Paul fielded rapid fire questions from the boys about everything from private equity to how hard Mr. John Thompson's classes were -- so the rumors are true! -- yet how much he enjoyed them.    

Paul entered Delbarton twenty years ago in 2004 for seventh grade. As an experienced lifer, in 9th grade he served as co-coordinator of the school hosts program. Keenly interested in his studies and competitive swimming, he received academic awards in 11th grade physics, 12th grade AP Art History and AP Psychology and confirms that his favorite courses were Mr. Thompson’s AP European History and International Relations courses.  Paul clearly is undaunted by hard work and his story likely inspires current Delbarton 7th graders to seek more challenges too.

Next, Paul moved to Princeton University where he majored in history and competed for four years on the varsity swim team, helping the Tigers win three Ivy League team championships. He was a three-time individual champion in the 500, 1000 and 1650 freestyles and graduated as a Scholar All-American in 2014.

In 2017, he entered Columbia Law School as a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar and, after graduating with his law degree from Columbia, joined Paul, Weiss in NYC as a first year associate in the corporate department where he soon specialized in Private Equity transactions. In 2020, he moved out of the city with the intention of continuing to build his Private Equity practice. In 2022, he joined global law firm DLA Piper where he currently serves as a Senior Associate in the firm's Short Hills office focusing on advising Private Equity firms and portfolio companies on strategic transactions, including M&A and debt or equity financings ranging from several million to several billion dollars.

Middle Schoolers had plenty of questions for this very accomplished fellow Delbarton lifer and enjoyed hearing all about Paul's education, athletic achievements, career path and experiences. 

Next to appear in the Middle School Alumni Speakers Series is David Balog '07, Director of Strategy and Innovation for the Las Vegas Golden Knights hockey team. Stay tuned for more reports on this new guest speaker series that is connecting our youngest students with their more experienced alumni brothers.