The Office of the President announced recently that five new members were elected to the Board of Governors for the University of
New Haven. The chairman of the board, Samuel S. Bergami, Jr., expressed delight in attracting these new members, citing their outstanding credentials and talents in a wide variety of fields. He also expressed his appreciation for their commitment to serve the UNH community, stating: “Each of these new members has much to offer UNH and we are grateful to them for agreeing to serve.” He further stated: “These new board members are self-made, talented people who love the school and support it, and who want to make a difference, both through their wallets and through their talents. They will join an already diverse board, not only as to gender and to race, but also as to location and as to profession.”
The new members of the Board of Governors are drawn from business, public service, and finance. They all hold advanced degrees and are distinguished in their chosen fields of study and in their professional careers. They are (in alphabetical order): John J. Falconi; Allen G. Love, Jr.; Victor M. Polanco; Michael J. Quiello; and Erika H. Steiner. They join some other twenty-eight board members for the year 2012-2013. Supplementing the regular board is the Board Emeriti. The members of this honorary board include the distinguished Dr. Henry C. Lee, the Chief Emeritus for the Division of Scientific Services for the Connecticut Department of Public Safety.
During a telephone interview, Chairman Bergami described the comprehensive, in-depth selection process to become a member of the board. Each prospective candidate is approached for interest in serving and for dedication to service. The candidate is then highly vetted by the nominating committee for the board, is interviewed by the president and others, and is subject to an extensive background screening for financial suitability. As part of the selection process, they may take a tour of the campus, may meet with faculty and staff for orientation purposes, and may make presentations to students on subjects of interest. If the candidate is passed on positively by the nominating committee, his or her name is submitted to the full board to vote for election. Upon election, the new members are given additional orientation (both through written materials and informal contact with other board members) before their attendance at their first board meeting, and may be assigned to a board committee based on their professional credentials.
The members of the board serve without compensation. To the contrary, board members are expected to support the University in its major gifts endeavors. According to Chairman Bergami, the members of the board have explicit sustained and consistent gift responsibilities. “They are expected to make contributions to the University financially,” the chair said, “and to make UNH one of their top three gift-giving recipients. The prospective board members are told this as part of the selection process.” Bergami, who will be retiring as chair on July 1 to serve as a member of the Board Emeriti, has led the way in this gift-giving fiat. He has made numerous contributions to the University’s community chest. Most recently, he endowed the Vincent C. Wachter Scholarship and has assumed – undisputedly – the first place as one of the University’s most generous and consistent financial supporters.
Pushing aside their gift-giving responsibilities, the members of the board must have a heartfelt, profound commitment, an affinity, to the University and the student body that they serve.
Newly elected board member Michael J. Quiello expressed such affinity – he described it as his love and his loyalty – for the University. In a telephone interview, he stated that he is energized by UNH students and feels that it is a privilege to be asked to serve on the board. He stated, “Coming from a blue-collar background, I can identify with the students who are working their way through college. It is as if my personal North Star led me to attend UNH and to now serve on its board.” Quiello who is an alumnus and who is now vice-president of corporate safety for United Airlines holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from UNH. His love for the University, his self-starting, successful career in aviation, and his understanding of the value of education, especially at UNH, makes him uniquely qualified to serve on the board.
Another new member of the board, John J. Falconi, also expressed his intense desire to serve. With no prior involvement with the University, Falconi brings a fresh set of eyes, a new look, to UNH, especially as to President Kaplan’s long-term strategic plan of where the University should be fiscally and structurally in the next five years. Falconi emphasized that when he toured the campus as part of the selection process, he saw an educational institution that is progressive and a student body looking to achieve. “I was excited by the energy of the University. From all signs, it is a school where young people can obtain the skills necessary to make a living for themselves.” As a GE executive and a corporate veteran of some thirty-two years, he is distinctively competent to state: “The University is a great avenue to get a good education.”
The board is charged with the fiscal and strategic oversight and governance of the University pursuant to the 1926 Articles of Association (which is the basis of the University’s creation as a Connecticut nonstock corporation). The board consists of twenty-one to forty members, who each serve a three-year term. Through its various committees (such as Executive, Finance, and Academics and Student Affairs), the board exercises its authority – indeed, its stewardship – for the betterment of the UNH learning community. To carry out its corporate duties, the board meets at least three times during the fiscal year with the next meetings scheduled for April 20 and June 8. Probably most important, the board is responsible for appointing and for terminating the employment of the UNH president, who serves at the pleasure of the board.
Thus, while the president as the chief executive officer runs the University on a day-to-day basis, it is the board that is ultimately responsible for ensuring the educational and social well-being of the 4,607 undergraduate and 1,778 graduate students. It also ensures the fiscal solvency of the University by overseeing its current operating budget of approximately $160 million.
Although Chairman Bergami views the role of the board to support the president and his executive staff and to recognize presidential authority, the board does not blindly rubberstamp the plans and policies rolled out by the Office of the President. This fact is confirmed by some new members of the board when they described their attendance at their first board meeting. Board member Quiello stated: “The board is very diverse. At the first meeting, there was a lot of conversation, including direct questioning and active participation. The board was very inquisitive and there was a real positive mix of ideas.” He commended President Kaplan for developing such a diverse, multi-talented, well-educated board with such a high degree of professionalism and commitment.
Students cannot attend the meetings of the board, but the board does meet regularly with student groups to hear their concerns on such issues as expansion and long-term development. And, while the board does not communicate its decisions on action items directly to the student body (such as through the publication of minutes), Chairman Bergami states that “students are made aware of board activities by the positive way in which the University is run.”
For more information about the Board of Governors and UNH administration, visit the “About UNH” page at http://www.newhaven.edu/about/.
