Leon Groisser (Deceased)

It also marked the beginning of his career in politics. "He made it clear that he didn't have four years to get an undergraduate degree," said Professor Emeritus Leon B. Groisser of the Department of Architecture, recalling the day Mr. Netanyahu showed up in his office as a 23-year-old freshman and Israeli war veteran. "He didn't say it with bravado," said Professor Groisser, who served as Mr. Netanyahu's faculty advisor. "He said it as fact. He proceeded to overload and he did very well." Mr. Netanyahu, the son of a Cornell University professor, had spent most of his teenage years in the United States. He returned to Israel for army duty, serving five years in an elite commando unit and reached the rank of captain, before coming to MIT.