By Kaitlin Carman
News Editor
Can you describe your educational and professional background?
I'm originally from Seattle, Washington. That's where I grew up and went to high school. I went to college at Seattle University. ... I had a strong interest in accounting. I graduated and immediately went on to law school at the University of California, Berkeley. ... I decided when I was in law school to go on and pursue a joint degree in business administration. I worked first at a law firm by the name of Foley, Hoag & Elliot. I was there for several years and ended up transitioning in-house. … I've been a corporate lawyer my entire life - that's my entire career. That's kind of what I do. In other words, I don't do litigation. I don't go to court. … I spent 17 years as a partner at Mintz Levin, also in downtown Boston. … I did a lot of pro bono work. It wasn't necessarily having to go to court, for which I had no skill set - so you didn't want me doing that - but I did a lot of work with a greater Boston food bank, a group called Community Servings, which is a meal delivery program. A number of its nutritionists come from Framingham State University. It's a very good nonprofit that serves a lot of people. In 2017, I left Mintz Levin to take a position at CVS Health, and that's where I am today.
Why do you serve on the Board of Trustees?
I was first serving as a member of the Massachusetts Pension Board. I was one of their trustees for four years. After I rolled off as a trustee, I continued to serve there on one of their committees - their Real Estate and Timberland committee. I live close to the University. I was passing it twice a day on my way to and from work. An opportunity came open and there I was. So, I've been serving for about 7 years. I'm on my second term. … I've served on the Governance Committee, the Compliance Audit Risk Committee, and the Finance Committee at the University. … This is one of the things I take really seriously because, when first asked, I said, “I don't know. I'm not sure I'm ready for that for various reasons.” Different things going on in life and so forth. But I think this was a good time for me.
What do you think Framingham State’s biggest strengths are?
I think that a lot of people describe it like a diamond in the rough. I didn't really realize, even though I lived in the neighborhood, all the things the University was doing. I didn't realize all the centers it ran. I didn't really realize where the students go on to - I've been very impressed. We get exposure to the Student-in-the-Spotlight at every trustee meeting - some super-star student, right? Over the seven years, I've seen a lot of students from different backgrounds, a lot of different interests, a lot of different aspirations - things that they want to do and have done. The University is helping them try to position themselves so that when they leave, they're in a position to advance to heights that they haven't imagined. … My hope is that the University has given them a set of skills and insights to go, “OK, now I can. I can actually realize what I want to do next.”
Do you have any short- or long-term goals for Framingham State?
The Board of Trustees itself is on the cusp of having a substantial amount of change within our ranks. We are normally 11 trustees. We have a vacancy now. We have three trustees rolling off and the student trustee rolling off. So we have … potentially five new trustees coming in to work together with the six that will be continuing. So, short term, one of my areas of focus is to make sure that we onboard when the time comes - I think it's going to be hopefully sooner rather than later. I'd like to go into the fall with a full board and full strength. … The other is for the University to continue to operate in a fiscally responsible manner to keep student fees in check. … I think that there's an opportunity to grow the University's endowment through its foundation. We have an enrollment decrease right now. I'd say that the University has a faculty-student ratio that is amazing - just it is at the lowest point. … We would like to see the student body increase in size. The research resources are there to accommodate additional students, so we just need to get the message out about the diamond that it is.
What are you reading right now?
I am reading “The Count of Monte Cristo” right now. It's the second time I’ve read it and I am enjoying it tremendously.