Scott S. Cowen, Celeste Volz Ford and Timothy F. Sutherland were elected to the University of Notre Dame’s Board of Trustees at the Board’s spring meeting May 4.
In other board action, three Trustees were elected to emeritus status: Douglas Tong Hsu, chair and chief executive officer of the Far Eastern Group; John F. “Jack” Sandner, retired chairman of the board of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange; and Rev. David T. Tyson, C.S.C., provincial superior of the U.S. Province of Priests and Brothers of the Congregation of Holy Cross.
In addition, Erin O’Connor French, recently elected as president-elect of the Notre Dame Alumni Association, will serve a two-year ex officio term on the Board.
Cowen is the 14th president of Tulane University, where he also is the Seymour S. Goodman Memorial Professor of Business and a professor of economics. During his 14-year tenure as Tulane’s president, undergraduate applications have quintupled, private giving has doubled, and research awards have reached record levels. A graduate of the University of Connecticut, he earned master’s and doctoral degrees in finance and management, respectively, from George Washington University. He is the author of four books and more than 100 academic and professional articles, essays and reviews on strategic financial management systems, corporate governance and leadership.
Ford is chief executive officer of Stellar Solutions Inc., a professional systems engineering services firm she founded in 1995. She also leads a United Kingdom-based affiliate, as well as QuakeFinder, the world’s leading private earthquake forecasting research organization; Stellar Ventures, a venture investment enterprise and incubator fostering early-stage technology development and market applications; and Stellar Solutions Foundation. A graduate of Notre Dame, she earned her master’s degree in aerospace engineering from Stanford University and previously worked for COMSAT, The Aerospace Corporation, and Scitor Corp. She previously served on the advisory council for Notre Dame’s College of Engineering.
Sutherland is founder, chair and chief executive officer of Pace Global Energy Services. Founded in 1976, Pace is an internationally recognized provider of advisory services, project evaluation, strategic planning, market assessment and risk management services. It has developed and successfully deployed a unique approach to energy and carbon management for over 10,000 industrial and large commercial facilities in North America and Europe and provides asset and risk management services to major energy consumers and utility companies representing a portfolio of over $10 billion. Sutherland earned his master of business administration degree from New York University and previously served on the advisory council for Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business.