COMMONFUND APPOINTS TWO NEW BOARD MEMBERS
Board of Trustees Taps Brown University and The Pittsburgh Foundation Executives to Enhance Commonfund’s Mission of Serving the Investment Needs of Nonprofits
WILTON, CT, December 19 , 2007 – Commonfund, the leading manager of investment funds for nonprofit institutions, today announced the appointment of Elizabeth Huidekoper, Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration at Brown University, and Dr. William E. Trueheart, recently retired President and Chief Executive Officer of The Pittsburgh Foundation, to its Board of Trustees. They will begin serving this month, and with these appointments the Board of Trustees now has a total of 12 members.
“The election of Ms. Huidekoper and Dr. Trueheart continues our tradition of strong Board leadership and experience in working with nonprofits,” said Verne O. Sedlacek, President and CEO, Commonfund. “We are fortunate to find these two highly qualified executives who will advance Commonfund’s mission and that of our clients.”
Elizabeth Huidekoper has been at Brown University since 2002, with overall responsibility for the University’s budget and financial planning, human resources, internal auditing, labor relations, police and security, environmental health and safety, insurance and risk, facilities, investments and all business operations. Prior to Brown, she held the position of Vice President for Finance at Harvard University since May 1996, overseeing financial operations with a staff of 320 and a budget of $30 million. During that time, she developed various financial strategies designed to help the President and Provost achieve their strategic objectives and revised the University’s budget and planning process. She also restructured the internal management of working capital, developed a university debt policy, revised its risk management approach, and implemented a new capital planning process.
Ms. Huidekoper was Director of Harvard’s Office of Budgets and Research Administration (1985-95), Associate Director in the Office of Budgets (1983-85), and Senior Financial Analyst (1981-83). In 1994, she also served as Acting Vice President for Finance, and led and managed the planning process which resulted in prioritized programs and capital projects and Harvard’s first University-wide fundraising campaign. Before that, she was Deputy Director of the Council for Northeast Economic Action, a nonprofit organization involved in economic development and research projects in New England, and a project manager in the city of Boston’s Office of Management and Budgets. She holds a B.A. degree from Bowdoin College and an M.B.A. from Boston University.
Dr. William E. Trueheart recently retired as President and CEO of The Pittsburgh Foundation where he served since December 2001. Prior to that, he was President and CEO of Reading is Fundamental, Inc., America’s oldest and largest children’s and family literacy organization and a Visiting Scholar at Harvard University. Before that, Mr. Trueheart served as President of Bryant University in Rhode Island -- the first African-American to head a four-year private college in New England – and was Executive Vice President and a member of its Board of Trustees. Previously, he was Associate Secretary of Harvard University in its Office of Governing Boards, Assistant Dean and Director of the Master in Public Administration Program at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, and a member of that School’s Visiting Committee.
Dr. Trueheart held several administrative posts at the University of Connecticut, including Dean of Undergraduate Academic Affairs in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Assistant to the President, and American Council on Education Fellow. He has served as a consultant to the United States National Park Service, the Ford Foundation, the Lilly Endowment, the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation, the College of the Atlantic, Lincoln University, and Arthur D. Little, Inc.
Dr. Trueheart currently serves on the Board of Directors of the University of Pittsburgh, the Allegheny Conference on Community Development, the Nellie Mae Education Foundation, Highmark Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Pittsburgh Regional Healthcare Initiative and Independent Sector. He serves on the Advisory Board of the Learning Network Education Partners and is a member of the Alumni Council of the Harvard University Graduate School of Education. He is former chairman of the Rhode Island Independent Higher Education Association and is former Vice Chairman of the National Council of Presidents of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges.
Dr. Trueheart was a director of The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), Fleet National Bank, Fleet National Bank Southern New England Banking Group, Narragansett Electric Company, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Rhode Island, New England Education Loan Marketing Corporation, Nellie Mae, Inc., Public Education Fund, the AICPA Foundation, National Education Fund Network, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, and the Rhode Island Children’s Crusade. His Honors include University of Connecticut Distinguished Alumnus, Harvard University Littauer Fellow, Travelli Fellow and Ford Foundation Fellow.
He earned a B.A. degree in political science and economics from the University of Connecticut, an M.P.A. from the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government, and an Ed.D. degree from the Graduate School of Education at Harvard University. His honorary degrees include a Ph.D. in Humane Letters from Bryant University, a Ph.D. in Education from Bridgewater State College and a D.B.A. from Johnson and Wales University.
Commonfund is governed by a Board of Trustees representing diverse professional backgrounds from both the nonprofit and for profit sectors. The current members of its Board include: Myra R. Drucker, Board Chair; William N. Goetzmann, Board Vice Chair, Yale School of Management; Leslie E. Bains, Vice Chairman of Modern Bank, N.A.; David M. Barrett, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Lahey Clinic; Bradford K. Gallagher, developer and founder of several well-known and successful enterprises; Dr. Frederick L. A. Grauer, Senior Advisor to Barclays Global Investors; Laurance R. Hoagland, Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, the Hewlett Foundation; Robert D. Pavey, Morgenthaler Ventures; Charles J. Pippin, Senior Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, Pepperdine University and Verne O. Sedlacek, President and Chief Executive Officer of Commonfund.
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About Commonfund
Founded in 1971, Commonfund is devoted to enhancing the financial resources of nonprofit institutions including endowments, foundations, healthcare and service organizations through superior fund management, investment advice, and treasury operations. Directly or through its subsidiaries, Commonfund Capital, Commonfund Realty, and Commonfund Asset Management Company, Commonfund manages approximately $43 billion for approximately 1,800 nonprofit educational institutions, foundations, healthcare and other nonprofit institutions, representing one of the largest pools of nonprofit investment funds in the world. In response to the growing needs of nonprofit institutions, Commonfund, together with its subsidiary companion organizations, offers more than 45 different investment programs including funds for the management of short- and intermediate-term operating cash reserves. All securities are distributed through Commonfund Securities, Inc. www.commonfund.org