Goldmark of Times Mirror Is Chosen : Rockefeller Foundation Gets New Chief

The Rockefeller Foundation announced Saturday that it had chosen Peter C. Goldmark Jr., a senior vice president of Times Mirror Co., as its new president and chief executive officer.

Goldmark, 47, will assume his new duties in July as head of one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious philanthropic organizations.

“This was an impossible challenge to turn down,” said Goldmark, whose duties at Times Mirror included being in charge of the company’s five Eastern newspapers. “Both the charter and the record of the Rockefeller Foundation are concerned with the largest questions of how we live together on this planet. This is a unique institution with a unique vantage point and experience at a moment of great promise for the future. It is an honor to be asked to lead it.”

300 Resumes Considered

The selection of Goldmark to succeed Richard W. Lyman, the Rockefeller Foundation’s president since 1980, came after a talent search during which almost 300 resumes were considered. Lyman, who will reach the foundation’s mandatory retirement age of 65 in the fall, will return to Stanford University to head a new Institute of International Studies. He was president of Stanford for a decade until he joined the foundation.

During his tenure, Lyman successfully completed some difficult tasks at the foundation, which was founded by John D. Rockefeller Sr. 75 years ago with more than 72,000 shares of Standard Oil of New Jersey stock. Lyman reorganized and slimmed down the foundation, carried out the mandate of the trustees to give its programs a multidisciplinary focus, and strengthened its links with other philanthropic institutions.

In their search for a new president, officials said, the trustees recognized that many of society’s most serious problems have become so complex and expensive that candidates needed the ability to leverage funds and promulgate ideas and to build partnerships with governments and other organizations.

Critical Global Issues

“One of the things that was very important to the board was that Peter Goldmark saw global issues as the critical thing,” said Dr. John R. Evans, chairman of the foundation’s trustees.

In an interview at the foundation’s offices in Manhattan, Goldmark said the problems the foundation addresses “are not going to yield to solo acrobatics. They are going to require people working together sometimes in ways they haven’t even imagined yet.”

Before joining Times Mirror in 1985, Goldmark held a number of posts in public service. He was executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, director of the budget for New York state, and Massachusetts secretary of human services. He is a graduate of Harvard University, is married and has three daughters.

Goldmark will leave Times Mirror on June 3 to prepare for his new post.

‘Performed With Skill’

“The Rockefeller Foundation’s activities are of special interest to Peter,” said Robert F. Erburu, chairman and chief executive officer of Times Mirror. “His presence here will be missed, as he has performed with great skill in many important assignments. . . . We wish him well in his new duties and take satisfaction in knowing that we, as well as the broader community, will continue to benefit from the exercise of his considerable talents.”

During its 75-year history, the Rockefeller Foundation has pioneered in public health programs and agricultural reform, making most of its grants overseas. Foundation scientists were leaders in the fight against malaria, yellow fever and hookworm.

Over the years, perhaps 10,000 scholars from around the world have been helped by the foundation’s funds. Its present endowment is $1.7 billion, and last year it awarded grants totaling $60.9 million.