Cornell elects 3 trustees

The Cornell College Board of Trustees has elected three new members, effective immediately. Joining the board are Albert “Bert” Cornelison, Peter Morris, and Scott Simmer ’73.

Albert “Bert” Cornelison

Cornelison, of Houston, recently retired as executive vice president of Halliburton and was its general counsel for over a decade. Prior to 2002 he was associate general counsel and vice president, overseeing Halliburton’s intellectual property, environmental, and litigation practices groups. Cornelison serves on the board for the Houston Grand Opera. He earned a B.S. from Santa Clara University and a J.D. from University of California, Davis. Cornelison is married to Julie Cornelison and is the father of recent Cornell graduate Morgan Cornelison ’14, a graduate student in international relations at American University in Washington, D.C.

 

Peter Morris

Morris, of  McLean, Virginia, recently retired as president, CEO, and portfolio manager at Homestead Funds Inc., a money management firm in Arlington, Virginia. He also served as the director and president of RE Advisers, and as vice president and chief investment officer of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). He assumed management of NRECA’s retirement funds in 1977 and the following year started the process of managing assets in-house. As the assets performed well, a demand was created for an investment vehicle and Homestead Funds was established in 1990 to meet this growing demand. Morris is a 1971 Coe College graduate with a dual major in economics and philosophy. He lives with his wife of over 20 years, Jainel Morris.

Scott Simmer ’73

Simmer, of Silver Spring, Maryland, is the managing partner of the Simmer Law Group PLLC in Washington, D.C., where he represents whistleblowers in cases alleging fraud that has financially impacted federal and state governments in the areas of healthcare, for-profit education, government contracting, securities, and banking fraud related to the financial meltdown. Simmer holds a B.A. from Cornell College, an M.F.A. in creative writing and English from the University of Arkansas, and a J.D. from the University of Iowa College of Law. He previously practiced in Des Moines, including as in-house counsel and chief litigation counsel for the Principal Financial Group. Simmer’s parents were Cornell alumni, as are his sister, Judith Simmer-Brown ’68, and brother, Stephen Simmer ’69. He is married to Peg Schoen, who is recently retired from the International Monetary Fund and now handles media relations for Simmer Law Group. He has two sons.