The Cornell College Board of Trustees has elected two new members, a new Young Trustee, and a Life Trustee, and has designated a new Chair-elect.
The board elected Jan Thomas ’80 and Maxine Urheim to the board, effective immediately.
Thomas earned a B.A. in sociology from Cornell College, a master’s degree from the University of Chicago, and a Ph.D. from the University of Colorado-Boulder. She is the Associate Provost and a sociology professor at Kenyon College. Thomas is the daughter of the Rev. Richard Thomas, professor emeritus of history, chaplain emeritus, and college historian; and the mother of Eric Doernhoefer ’13.
Urheim earned a B.S. in biology from University of Miami in 1974 and an M.S. in advertising from Northwestern in 1987. She was a marketing manager during her 24-year career at Abbott Labs in Chicago. Urheim and her husband, John Urheim ’62, a life trustee who passed away in January 2014, have been longtime supporters of the college. She has served on the Board of Directors of the Scottsdale Private Golf Club since 2012, and in 2011 and 2012 she co-chaired the Rally for the Cure, a fundraising event put on by the club members.
At its May meeting, the Board of Trustees named Angelica Hall ’15 as the class of 2015's Young Trustee. Hall, who graduated with majors in biology and psychology, will serve a three-year term. Hall was an active campus leader, most recently serving as president of the Black Awareness Cultural Organization, president and activities coordinator of the Cornell multicultural sorority Beta Psi Eta, vice president and historian of the psychology honor society Psi Chi, Student Senate senior class representative, and student co-chair of the Diversity Committee.
The board also voted in May to name Mary Bowman Seidler ’61 a life trustee in recognition for her service to both Cornell College and the college's Board of Trustees. Seidler earned a B.A. in political science from Cornell College in 1961. She served on Cornell’s Board of Trustees from 1989 to 1990, and from 1996 through 2005. She was Executive Director of the Program for Cornell, and played a significant role in Cornell's capital campaign. She is a philanthropist, and an active member of her community.
The board voted to name Gilda Vinzulis Boyer ’84 as chair-elect of the board of trustees. She will take over the chair from John McGrane ’73 following the October 2017 Board of Trustees meeting. Boyer is a current trustee, and in addition to her service on the board, she is also a member of the advisory board for the Center for Law and Society.
