Edward A. Rowe, ’71, was appointed executive vice president and director of acquisitions and dispositions at Orix Real Estate Equities in Chicago. He formerly was senior vice president. The announcement appeared in Crain’s Chicago Business.

Georges Legros, ’72, is now managing director and CEO of Fortis Bank Asia (formerly Belgian Bank) and CEO, North Asia, of Fortis Bank. He joined Belgian Bank in 1984. His new position was announced in the South China Morning Post.

Joan M. Giardina, ’74, was promoted to senior vice president at Chicago Trust. She also will continue as manager of personal trust investment services, according to Crain’s Chicago Business.

Rand Rosenberg, ’77, was named chief financial officer and senior vice president of finance and corporate development at InfoSpace. Prior to his appointment, he worked at Montgomery Securities, where he was the founder, senior managing director, and partner of the firm’s telecom and media investment banking practices. InfoSpace furnishes communication, information, and commerce infrastructure services for wireless devices, merchants, and Web sites. The announcement ran on dbusiness.com.

Jeff A. Jacobson, ’79, was named regional chief executive officer of LaSalle Investment Management’s European operations. He also will serve as managing director of Jones Lang LaSalle and will chair LaSalle Investment Management’s European investment committee. The announcement appeared in the Chicago Tribune.

Keith Spurgeon, ’79, CEO and chairman of Zany Brainy, was featured in Hemispheres, the magazine of United Airlines. “We’re true believers in our corporate mission, and we believe doing the right thing for kids can be profitable,” Spurgeon said. According to the article, Zany Brainy’s “entire business model is predicated on a moralistic value system illustrated best by the merchandise it does not carry. No Barbie dolls or GI Joes, no Nintendo or professional wrestling videos––nothing that the company feels promotes violence or gender stereotypes.”
At press time, Spurgeon announced he is leaving Zany Brainy.

Jacque Ducharme, ’80, was named president of Julien J. Studley. Formerly, he was senior executive vice president and Midwest regional manager, according to Crain’s New York Business.

Daniel P. O’Brien, ’80, was appointed executive vice president and chief financial officer of Genuity. O’Brien previously held the offices of executive vice president and treasurer at GTE. His promotion was announced on IPO Express online.

Vasant M. Prabhu, ’83, was named chief financial officer of Safeway. Prior to joining Safeway, he was president of the information and media services unit at McGraw-Hill. The announcement appeared in the Wall Street Journal.

Ellen Carnahan, ’84, managing director for William Blair Capital Partners, was selected from among 300 recommendations to appear on i-Street magazine’s first list of 26 “New Economy Women. ” Candidates were selected based on their visibility in the community and their effect on jumpstarting the new economy in Chicago. Next year, these same women will serve as judges and rank new candidates “so that we continually capture the emerging leaders, ” said the magazine’s founder, president, and CEO Darcy Evon.

Joyce V. Gab Kneeland, ’85, was named senior vice president for AT&T Broadband’s Chicago market. Previously, she served as executive vice president and chief of field operations for U.S. Cellular in Chicago. Her new position was reported in the Chicago Tribune.

Mark A. Ernst, ’86, the newly appointed CEO of H&R Block, was featured in an article about the company in Business Week. Ernst leads H&R Block’s effort to offer full-line financial services that make it possible for clients to not only have their tax returns prepared, but also to get financial advice, apply for home loans, buy mutual funds, and plan for retirement.

James C. Clarke, ’87, was named senior vice president of finance and chief financial officer at Indigo, a public charter operation for business air travel. Previously, he served as director of structured finance for the debt capital markets group at Merrill Lynch. The announcement ran in the Chicago Tribune and Crain’s Chicago Business.

Brian Scott Posner, ’87, has opened a money management firm, Hygrove Partners. Previously, Posner worked as a mutual fund manager at Fidelity Investments and Warburg Pincus Funds. The announcement appeared in Crain’s New York Business.

Eric Nielsen, ’88, was promoted to president and CEO of Volvo Construction Equipment Korea in June 2000. Nielsen is responsible for Volvo’s global excavator business line. He previously served as the company’s chief financial officer and vice president. The announcement was posted in the Korea Herald.

Kevin Geshwender, ’91, was appointed chief financial officer at Fred Burglund & Sons. He joined the company from CNA Financial, where he served as assistant vice president. The announcement appeared in Crain’s Chicago Business.

Ivo Welch, M.B.A. ’89, Ph.D. ’91, was appointed professor of finance at Yale School of Management. Previously, he taught at UCLA. The announcement appeared in the Financial Times.

James D. Leckinger, ’93, joined Northern Trust in Schaumburg, Illinois, as vice president and senior portfolio manager. Previously, he served as vice president and chief investment officer at Oak Brook Bank. The announcement ran in Crain’s Chicago Business.

Anne Brettingen, ’95, was appointed director at Cushman and Wakefield. Formerly, she served as vice president and leader of the retail team at HIGroup. The announcement ran in Crain’s Chicago Business.

George Rupp, XP-34 (’74), was named senior project manager at the Louis Berger Group. Prior to his appointment, he was director of environmental assessment at BE&K Terranext. The announcement appeared in Crain’s New York Business.