Boris Bershteyn, Class of 1995: Federal Administrator

“It’s about doing things you enjoy,” Lynbrook class of 1995 alum Boris Bershteyn said. “What would you like to do? Who do you really want to be? What kind of people do you want to hang out with?”

Throughout his career as a lawyer and government official for the Obama administration, Bershteyn has always looked back at these three questions as the foundation for his success. As a first-generation immigrant, Lynbrook’s welcoming environment motivated Bershteyn to participate in every extracurricular activity related to public speaking and law: Mock Trial, Speech and Debate and even the Epic. Fond memories of Mock Trial coach and private attorney Mark Shem, national Speech and Debate tournaments with coach Shirley Keller-Firestone and late-night productions on the Epic paved the way to Bershteyn majoring in economics and political science at Stanford University and studying law at Yale University.

Bershteyn pursued his true passion as a lawyer when he landed a job at a private firm in New York.

“I’m always learning something new,” Bershteyn said. “Although it’s very challenging, time flies by when I’m enjoying the process.”

 After privately practicing law for several years, Bershteyn discovered the fun in government, serving as the Deputy General Counsel of the Office of Management and Budget from 2008 to 2010 under the Obama administration. He then joined the White House staff as Special Assistant to the President for a few months before returning to his former position in 2011 when the other General Counsel of OMB resigned. In 2012, President Obama delegated Bershteyn the responsibility of the Administrator of Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, which oversees the myriad of bureaucracies within the federal government. 

Despite the massive amount of work, managing and deciding budgets for the plethora of agencies in government, Bershteyn loved it.

“Although there are hard, long work hours and, in some cases, a lot of stress, I think all these jobs are fun,” Bershteyn said. “In the Obama administration, I loved all the people I worked with — and I feel the same about my law firm today.”

Advising clients and practicing law is a challenging task, but Bershteyn finds true passion and fun in working with different people and solving complicated problems.