The Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans Inc. recently selected Thomas J. Baltimore Jr., a University of Virginia alumnus who worked his way from a modest background to become president, chair and CEO of a $9 billion lodging real estate investment trust, as one of 12 recipients of its 2025 Horatio Alger Awards.
Baltimore – the subject of a 2022 UVA Today profile – leads the Tysons-based Park Hotels & Resorts. He earned an undergraduate degree from UVA’s McIntire School of Commerce in 1985 and an MBA from the Darden School of Business in 1991.
“For 76 years, the Horatio Alger Award has been awarded to Americans who have achieved great success despite facing significant personal hardships,” the association’s announcement states.
Baltimore joins more than 200 previous recipients, including Oprah Winfrey, Reba McIntire, Johnny Cash, Hank Aaron, Rob Lowe and leaders in business and other pursuits. Besides Baltimore, this year’s entering class also includes singer Lee Greenwood.
Baltimore’s mother raised five children while working nights, and his father gave up a steady job to enter the ministry at age 33, starting his own Baptist church. Baltimore worked his way through high school and college.
Since graduation and ascent in the business world, he has supported scholarships and fellowships for minority students at UVA, served on several University committees and boards, and guest-lectured at the Darden School.
“Although I grew up in a loving home, my family dealt with many economic hardships. That lack of financial stability forced me to rely on my education to lift me out of those circumstances,” Baltimore said in a press release. “I truly believe that with prayer, preparation and perseverance, anything is possible.”
The Horatio Alger Association, a nonprofit educational organization, “aims to teach young people about the limitless possibilities available through the American free-enterprise system.” Since 1984, it has awarded annual need-based scholarships to high school students who overcome significant obstacles and demonstrate a commitment to continuing their education and making a unique contribution to society.
Association members have provided more than $265 million to 37,000 students in the past 40 years.
