Through July 4, The Post, in partnership with the Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream, is spotlighting Americans sharing what the American dream means to them in 2026 — including George Yancopoulos, president of Regeneron.
I was raised in New York City, but my family’s roots are in northern Greece. Like many immigrant families, mine knew what it meant to work tirelessly simply to get by.
The greatest advantage a person can have is a family that stands behind them. Sadly, too many children grow up without that foundation. I don’t think opportunity is only about money. In some ways, growing up without material comforts can create drive and determination. But it is much harder to overcome the absence of a real support system. That is something many immigrant families do have, even when money is scarce: an extended family network. When I was young, my grandparents, my parents, my sister and I all lived together in a one-bedroom apartment. It was crowded, but everyone was there for one another.
English was not my first language, and I had difficulty with it at first. But numbers came naturally to me. So did science — and anything involving gadgets.
One of the figures who inspired me was a remarkable Greek-American scientist named Roy Vagelos, who went on to earn worldwide recognition.
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His laboratory developed the first statin. He rose from leading research and development at Merck to becoming the company’s chief operating officer, and he is widely regarded as one of the key architects of the modern biopharmaceutical industry.
My father told me, “If you’re going to be a scientist, don’t be an ordinary one. Be like Roy Vagelos. Look at what he accomplished — he’s a first-generation immigrant like you. If he can do it, so can you.”
Roy became my role model and my hero. Years later, in an extraordinary turn of events, when Leonard S. Schleifer and I founded Regeneron, we were eventually able to persuade Roy Vagelos himself to serve as chairman of our company.
I ended up … for almost 30 years working together with my role model and mentor that my dad told me to be like. We worked together to build Regeneron and develop a great number of important new medicines.
The American Dream Video Project showcases real stories that illuminate pathways to opportunity. Featured at the Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream (MCAAD), this series is part of the Center’s celebration of America’s 250th anniversary. MCAAD is Washington, DC’s newest cultural institution, offering interactive exhibits and stories about achieving the American Dream. For more information, visit mcaad.org.
