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LeaderNotes

A newsletter for Foundation Directors and friends of higher education in Maryland
In This Issue
Save the Date
New Board Members
NFL's Madieu Williams Endows UM School of Public Health
Confucius Institute at University of Maryland Receives $1M
Spotlight on the Board
Towson Donor Recognition Dinner
USM News Briefs
Quick Links
Volume 3, Number 8 December 2009
Dear Friends and Colleagues:
 
This year marks the 30th anniversary of the USM Foundation.  At the Foundation's annual board meeting on November 13, we acknowledged the Foundation's origins, leadership, and growth over the past three decades.  The foundation was established  in 1979 with a gift of 471 Black Angus cattle valued at $700,000.  Today, the Foundation has evolved into a full-service organization serving 15 client organizations and managing $750 million in assets.  We are indebted to the many visionary leaders and volunteers whose commitment and dedication have made the foundation a vibrant and forward-looking organization, serving as a trusted partner for our USM clients, as well as several area community colleges.
 
At the November board meeting, Michael Gaines, Jesse Williams, Art Mehlman, and Jaye Gamble completed their terms of service and were appointed Honorary Directors for life.  Four new Directors were elected to initial one year terms: Alfonso Cornish, Larry Letow, Bonnie Stein, and William T. Wood (more below).  Of special note, Walter Fatzinger graciously agreed to serve one more year as chairman and was elected by acclamation.  Walter has made it clear that he will step down next November.  We are grateful for his willingness to continue his service into 2010.
 
A special word of thanks is in order for Art Mehlman, who ably served as the Foundation's Treasurer since 2002 and has been a member of the Board of Directors since 1993.  Our thanks go out to Art for his long and dutiful service.  We are delighted that Dennis Wraase has agreed to step into this role.
 
As always, please contact me at [email protected] or 301-445-1941 with any questions.  Wishing you and yours a warm and happy holiday season. 
 
Sincerely,
 
Leonard R. Raley
Investment Performance through 10/31/09*

*Estimated; Private Investments marked as of 6/30/09

 

Endowment

S&P 500

80/20

60/40

Latest Mo

-0.1%

-1.9%

-1.4%

-0.9%

Calendar Yr

8.7%

17.0%

15.2%

13.2%

3 Yr AACR

-2.0%

-7.0%

-4.1%

-1.3%

5 Yr AACR

4.5%

0.3%

1.5%

2.6%

 

Campaign Progress

Publicly Announced Campaigns

Institution

Announced

Goal

10/31/09

Bowie

11/08

$15M

$8.4M

Coppin

10/07

$15M

$4.6M

Frostburg

10/08

$15M

$11.0M

Salisbury

6/06

$30M

$32.6M

Towson

11/06

$50M

$40.3M

UB

3/09

$40M

$28.1M

UMB

10/07

$650M

$349.3M

UMBC

9/06

$100M

$101.8M

UMCES

11/07

$8M

$4.3M

UMCP

10/06

$1B

$658.5M

UMES

9/06

$14M

$10.0M

UMUC

2/08

$26M

$20.2M

USM Federated

 

-

 

$1.7B

 

$1.3B

Save The Date

Celebration of Chancellor Kirwan's Carnegie Academic Leadership Award Slated for January 30, 2010
 
In recognition of Chancellor William E. "Brit" Kirwan's recent selection for the prestigious Carnegie Corporation Academic Leadership Award, the Board of Regents is hosting a black tie celebration at the Samuel V. Riggs IV Alumni Center at the University of Maryland, College Park, on January 30. 
 
Chancellor Kirwan is being recognized for his decades-long work in closing the achievement gap, strengthening STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education, promoting workforce development, enhancing K-12 teacher education, and implementing the Efficiency and Effectiveness Initiative, which has become a national model, among other innovations.
 
The Carnegie award carries with it a $500,000 grant to be used at the recipient's discretion to further the recipient's initiatives.  Chancellor Kirwan will use his award to launch A Matter of Degrees: USM Leading the Way in College Completion.  The initiative will support college completion intervention efforts, including scholarships to those in good standing who are at risk of dropping out of school close to graduation; course redesign in order to make "gateway" courses more accessible to all students - with improved interaction with faculty - which will ultimately help them to complete their degrees on time; and funding for Way2GoMaryland, a USM public information campaign that encourages middle school students to begin planning for college.  This effort will build the pipeline of minority and underrepresented students who will eventually attend USM institutions. Proceeds from the dinner, after expenses, will support the college completion program.
 
Invitations will be delivered by mail in early December.
For more information on attending or supporting the event, please contact the USM Office of Special Events, at 301-445-2700 or [email protected].
Foundation Welcomes New Board Members
Alfonso N. "Al" Cornish is the vice president, education and development/chief learning officer for Norton Healthcare.  In this role, he is the leadership director of Norton University, which provides executive development programs and e-learning offerings for clinical and non-clinical staff. In addition, he is responsible for career planning and overall talent management efforts.  Cornish has over thirty years experience in administrative, training, human resource and operations management. Most recently, he served as deputy chief administrative officer for Prince George's County.  Cornish is a cum laude graduate of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore and holds a Master of Science in human resource management (summa cum laude) from Lacrosse University. 

Larry Letow is the president and chief operating officer of Convergence Technology Consulting. Letow is responsible for the management and leadership of the organization. He first joined Convergence Technology Consulting in 2004 as chief operating officer and was promoted to president in 2006. That year, he was awarded the Technology Council of Maryland's Technology Executive of the Year Award in recognition for his outstanding contributions to the growth of Convergence Technology Consulting and his involvement in the community. Prior to joining Convergence Technology Consulting, Letow served as senior vice president of Infinity Consulting Group. Letow currently serves as the chair of the Tech Alliance for the Tech Council of Maryland, as well as the Tech Council's Tech Alliance Charitable Foundation. 

Bonnie Stein is executive vice president and managing director for PNC Wealth Managment in the Greater Maryland region. She is responsible for the distribution of Wealth Management products and services, which includes wealth and estate planning, investment and fiduciary services as well as private banking.  Ms. Stein has more than 25 years of financial services experience.  She joined PNC in 2001 as head of Wealth Management for the Greater Maryland region.  Prior to joining PNC, Ms. Stein served with Allfirst Financial where she was the president of the brokerage and insurance subsidiaries, senior vice president for branch administration and sales support, as well as a member of the strategic planning/merger and acquisition team. Ms. Stein received a bachelor's degree in behavioral science from the University of Maryland University College.

William T. Wood, Esq., past president of the Maryland Trial Lawyers Association (now the Maryland Association for Justice) and former Maryland criminal prosecutor, is actively engaged in civil and criminal trial work. He has tried many high profile civil and criminal cases in many state and federal courts. He also has lectured extensively on litigation-related matters and has appeared periodically on Channel 5 Fox Television News in the Washington-Metropolitan area and MSNBC nationally pertaining to legal issues of local and national interest.  Wood earned a degree in economics at the University of Maryland in 1963 and a J.D. from the University of Maryland Law School in 1966.  He is a past member of the University System of Maryland Board of Regents and a former member of the Advisory Board for the Universities at Shady Grove.  He also serves on the University of Maryland, Baltimore Foundation.  
NFL Player & Former Terp Madieu Williams Endows Center in UM School of Public Health
MadieuOn November 4, the University of Maryland School of Public Health and Minnesota Vikings free safety and UM alumus Madieu Williams announced the creation of the Madieu Williams Center for Global Health Initiatives.  Made possible by a $2 million endowment gift from Williams, the Center will be an outgrowth of a partnership among the Madieu Williams Foundation, the University, Prince George's County, and the Embassy of Sierra Leone.
 
The endowment will provide annual support for the Center, which will focus on local, state-wide and global health initiatives, with particular attention to public health needs in Prince George's County, where Williams grew up, and in Freetown, Sierra Leone, where he was born.
 
"I've been very blessed to be in this position to do something, to look beyond the playing field and make a difference in my community," said Williams.  "And this new Center honors my mother's wish to make a lasting change in Prince George's County and Sierra Leone."
Confucius Institute at University of Maryland Receives $1M Challenge Grant from Hanban
Funds Will Promote Chinese Culture on Campus
 
The Confucius Institute at Maryland (CIM) has received $1 million in endowment funding from Hanban, the Office of Chinese Language Council International, in Beijing, China.  The award will be matched dollar-for-dollar over the next year through a fundraising effort by CIM and the University of Maryland Office of University Relations.  Once fully funded, the proceeds from the endowment will be used to establish and promote a distinguished scholar speaker series in Chinese literature, philosophy and culture, in collaboration with other schools and departments at the university.

University of Maryland President C. D. Mote, Jr., established CIM on campus in 2004, after returning from a trip to China, in close collaboration with then-Minister of Education at the Chinese Embassy (currently Secretary General of the Beijing Normal University) Chuansheng Liu (not to be confused with the professor and CIM director). 

President Mote also established the Center for Chinese Language Teacher Certification and Development (CCLTCD) at the University of Maryland, the first in the state to certify and develop teachers of Chinese language.  The Center was founded by the the College of Education and CIM in September 2009 through a $440,000 grant from Hanban. Dr. Linda Valli, professor and interim chair, Department of Curriculum and Instruction, is the director of the Center, which is currently recruiting students.
Spotlight on the Board
BedingfieldRobert A. Bedingfield
Partner
Ernst & Young LLP
 
Bob Bedingfield is one of Ernst & Young's most senior international coordinating partners.  He has extensive experience serving large multinational and SEC companies, as well as significant experience with public offerings and international operations.  In addition to his client serving responsibilities, Bedingfield serves as the E&Y America's Leader for Aerospace and Defense. 
 
Bedingfield is a 1970 graduate of the University of Maryland, where he received a bachelor's of science in accounting. 
Towson Holds Donor Recognition Reception at Hidden Waters

Patty and Bob Caret

Pictured: Patricia Harper Kirwan and Towson President Robert Caret
 
On September 24, almost 200 friends of Towson University came together at Hidden Waters to celebrate the second most successful fundraising year in the university's history.  Members of the Founders Society (leadership annual giving), Tower Light Society (estate gifts), and Golden Tiger Society (20-years of consecutive giving) gathered at the Chancellor's historic Baltimore home for a reception and engaging conversation.
 
USM News Briefs
President Barack Obama has nominated USM Regent Orlan Johnson to be the Chairman of the the Securities Investment Protection Corporation.  Regent Johnson is a partner in the Business Department of the Law firm Saul Ewing LLP.  His practice focuses on general corporate and securities matters, complex business transactions and federal and state regulatory issues in business and securities transactions including proxy solicitations, bankruptcy, equity and debt offerings.  Prior to joining Saul Ewing, Mr. Johnson was Of Counsel at Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy, LLP where he served as co-head of its regulatory practice in the Washington, DC office. Previously, he served as a staff attorney and branch chief in the Division of Investment Management for the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.  Orlan Johnson is an adjunct professor of law at Howard University School of Law where he has taught Securities Regulation classes.  He received his B.A. from Andrews University and his J.D. from Howard University School of Law.
 
UMBC President Freeman A. Hrabowski III was included in Time's list, "The 10 Best College Presidents." Hrabowski was honored as "Nine Presidents to Watch" for his leadership in making UMBC a powerhouse in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields and for his efforts to channel minorities toward graduate school. UMBC is one of the nation's leading sources of African-American Ph.D.s in science and engineering, and almost half of its seniors go immediately to grad school. 
 
The University of Maryland, Baltimore sponsored, in part, a three-day World Stem Cell Summit at the Baltimore Convention Center in late September.  The event was attended by experts from 25 countries and included speakers such as the School of Medicine professor and summit co-chair, Curt Civin, MD; Karen Rothenberg, JD, the Marjorie Cook Professor of Law at the School of Law and chair of the Maryland Stem Cell Research Commission; and Maryland Governor and School of Law alumnus, Martin O'Malley, JD '88.
 
The Maryland Center at Bowie State will partner with the University of Maryland School of Medicine's new national Bioethics Research Center, to provide summer training programs for historically black colleges, universities and academic health centers across the country for the study of bioethics and clinical trial design issues as well as fellowships.  The Bioethics Research Center was created with a grant for more than $2.4 million from the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities, a part of the National Institutes of Health. 
 
UMES President Thelma B. Thompson received an honorary doctoral degree of literature and philosophy from Walter Sisulu University for Technology & Science in South Africa following her address to the graduating class in September. Named for Walter Max Utyate Sisulu, who worked alongside Nelson Mandela in reversing apartheid without bloodshed, the university is a major outcome of the restructuring of the South African higher education landscape in 2005.
 
The University of Maryland, Baltimore officially opened its $58 million student center on September 16.  The Southern Management Corporation Campus Center includes dining areas, conference and study rooms, an indoor pool, basketball courts, an elevated track and a fitness room.  President David Ramsay called the center "transformational" because it will provide a unifying point for students of UMB's various schools and will foster greater collaboration.  Southern Management Corporation, a large Mid-Atlantic property management company, contributed $5 million toward the project.
 
Frostburg State University has received more than $850,000 in federal funds to equip its new Sustainable Energy Research Facility with equipment and computers.  The residential-sized building will use renewable energy resources for heating, cooling and electricity.  The Department of Energy grant will be combined with more than $450,000 from other sources for the final phase of the project's development.
 
The third annual Elizabethtowne Feaste and Frolic in Hagerstown, Md., raised more than $20,000 in scholarship funds for students enrolled in programs at the University System of Maryland at Hagerstown. The scholarships will be awarded to students who attend programs at USMH in the spring of 2010 for use in the 2010-2011 academic year.
 
Walter Boynton and Michael Kemp, veteran researchers with the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, were recently honored by their peers for their work in advancing understanding of water bodies like the Chesapeake Bay. The pair received the Odum Lifetime Achievement Award from the Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation at its annual meeting in Portland, OR. The award recognizes their individual as well as their collective research over the last 30 years. 
In Memoriam
George McGowan, Former USM Regent
The USM Foundation is saddened to report the passing of former USM Regent George V. McGowan on November 5, 2009.  He was 81 years old.  Mr. McGowan was a former member of Constellation Energy's board of directors and chairman and chief executive officer of Baltimore Gas and Electric Company from 1988 to 1993.
 
A Baltimore native, Mr. McGowan joined BGE as a bill distributor in 1947. He earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Maryland in 1951 and went on to hold numerous leadership positions, serving as project manager for the Calvert Cliffs plant from 1967 to 1972, and chief nuclear engineer from 1972 to 1974. He also served as manager - corporate staff services, and vice president - management and staff services, before being named president and chief operating officer in 1980.

In addition to his service on the University System of Maryland Board of Regents, Mr. McGowan was active in numerous civic and professional organizations. He also served as chairman of the Baltimore Polytechnic Institute Board of Overseers, the Baltimore Polytechnic Institute Foundation, Inc., and Maryland Communications Center, Inc. He was a former director for the National Flag Day Foundation, Pride of Baltimore, Queen Anne's County Department of Business and Tourism, and was honorary director of Preakness Celebration, Inc.
Diana White
Editor
301-445-1999