Rob Siegfried named 2025 Pete du Pont Freedom Award Honoree for leadership and philanthropy

CEO and Founder of the Siegfried Group, LLP, 2025 Pete du Pont Freedom Award Honoree, Rob Siegfried, and his wife, Kathy. (Photo Courtesy of Siegfried Group)

WILMINGTON — The Pete du Pont Freedom Foundation has announced Rob Siegfried, founder and CEO of The Siegfried Group, as the recipient of the 2025 Pete du Pont Freedom Award. The annual award recognizes individuals who exemplify the spirit of innovation and leadership embodied by the late Governor Pete du Pont.

Siegfried will be honored during a dinner celebration on Wednesday, September 10, at the Hotel du Pont in Wilmington. The event will gather Delaware’s business and civic leaders to recognize Siegfried’s entrepreneurial success and philanthropic impact.

The foundation cited Siegfried’s “outstanding entrepreneurial leadership and philanthropic contributions, which have fostered meaningful relationships throughout the state of Delaware and across the nation.”

A University of Delaware alumnus, Siegfried founded his firm in 1988 after beginning his career at Arthur Young. The Siegfried Group has since grown into a national professional services organization headquartered in Wilmington, with offices in 19 cities and nearly 1,400 employees. The firm partners with more than 350 Fortune 1000 companies and high-growth organizations to support strategic financial initiatives such as mergers, acquisitions, IPO readiness, and systems implementations.

iegfried and his wife, Kathy, also recently made a historic $71.5 million donation to the University of Delaware, which will establish Siegfried Hall and the Siegfried Institute for Leadership and Free Enterprise at UD’s Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics.

“The people we met and the experiences we had at the University of Delaware were transformative to us then and are still making a difference to us now,” said Rob Siegfried.

“My professors and advisors believed in me – and all these years later, it is so emotionally gratifying for Kathy and me to contribute to UD in this way and acknowledge them for the impact they had on us without even knowing it.”

The Siegfried Institute will serve as a hub for leadership development, guided by principles of limited government, free enterprise, and individual responsibility. Rob Siegfried emphasized the institute’s mission to explore “the capabilities and characteristics of effective leadership,” while engaging students and scholars in examining how economic and political systems influence individual freedom.

“In contrast to others’ focus on big government and empowering the government, the Siegfried Institute will focus on limited government and empowering the individual,” he said. “I envision a series of lively debates between the two schools of thought.”

University of Delaware President Dennis Assanis praised the Siegfrieds’ contribution, calling it a “transformative contribution” that will “ensure that Siegfried Hall and the Siegfried Institute continue to inspire, educate, and shape leaders for years to come.”

Kathy Siegfried added, “This is a gift that will support generations of students, helping them to thrive in an environment that nurtures leadership and innovation, while best supporting individual freedom.”

Claudia Estrada

Claudia is a Philadelphia-based journalist and reporter passionate about storytelling that informs and engages the community. Claudia, a proud Temple University graduate, has built a career covering impactful stories and creating compelling content across digital and print media platforms. With a strong background in writing, editing, and research, Claudia has worked on various topics, from local news to in-depth features, always striving to deliver meaningful and accurate reporting.