Glenn Schaeffer, president and chief financial officer for Mandalay Resort Group, graduated summa cum laude in literature from the University of California at Irvine, where he was elected its youngest Phi Beta Kappa scholar. A one-time stockbroker who rose through the ranks of Ramada Inc. to become corporate vice president, Glenn joined Circus Circus in 1984, shortly after its initial public offering of stock. Glenn was president, CFO and director of Circus Circus from 1987 to 1993. Glenn returned to the company in 1995 when Circus Circus bought the Gold Strike, where he was principal and executive.

During the last decade, Mandalay became a leader in building the new Las Vegas and in 2001, Las Vegas Magazine featured Schaeffer as one of the five executives who shaped the latter-day Las Vegas. Glenn was instrumental in the creation of the Center for Responsible Gaming. In 2000, Glenn founded the International Institute of Modern Letters, based at UNLV.