How Far Karoline Leavitt's Husband Nicholas Riccio Really Got In School

Most of what gets written about White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt and her husband, real estate mogul Nicholas Riccio, revolves around their massive age gap, which is bigger than you might think — 32 years, to be exact. However, there's more to Riccio than being Leavitt's husband following their marriage in January 2025 on the heels of Donald Trump's inauguration. While he seems to shy away from the press these days, Riccio had a whole life before meeting Leavitt, settling down, and starting their little family. That, of course, includes his early life and career, which starts with a stint in higher education.

Riccio, a successful real estate agent who's worth much more than we thought, is a college graduate who obtained a degree from Plymouth State University in New Hampshire. He revealed as much in a 2005 interview with the Sunday Herald, one of the only interviews he's done over the years. Unfortunately, Riccio didn't disclose how his grades were in college, so there's no way to gauge where he landed on the academic scale. However, it's clear that Riccio, who worked to pay for his own education while experiencing bouts of homelessness, was incredibly determined to succeed despite the obstacles against him. "When I was 19 or 20, I would call my buddies to go over their houses to watch a game just so I could take a shower," he revealed.

In Riccio's case, adversity served as motivation for the future real estate mogul, who started planting the seeds for his successful future soon after graduating.

As Nicholas Riccio relayed to the Sunday Herald, he experienced several bumps in the road during his early years. However, his determination to use real estate to improve his circumstances changed his life in ways he only could have dreamed of. Shortly after graduating from Plymouth State, he took a chance on himself by enrolling in a real estate course, then slowly found success within the business until he founded his own real estate company, Riccio Enterprises, LLC. Aside from his success allowing Riccio and Leavitt to live lavish lives, it also opened up other opportunities for him. "My work in real estate has helped facilitate my dream of owning a professional sports team," Riccio admitted. "And that will happen one day in the near future."

Unfortunately, it doesn't appear as if Riccio has ever actually owned any sports teams as of 2025, but that's just one more thing to check off of his bucket list one day in the future. What his success has done, however, has helped him to feel comfortable in supporting his wife as she ascends the ranks within her own profession. Leavitt made such an admission during a March 2025 interview on "The Megyn Kelly Show." During the wide-ranging chat, where Leavitt actually acknowledged that their 32-year age gap wasn't exactly the norm, she said, "He is my greatest supporter, he's my best friend and he's my rock. He's built a very successful business himself so now he's fully supportive of me building my success in my career.