Alumni Connections - No. 107 - June 2013

Algeta ASA: Paolo Pucci, '90, has been elected to the board of directors at the Oslo, Norway-based oncology pharmaceutical company. Pucci is CEO of ArQule Inc., a Woburn, Massachusetts-based cancer therapeutics company.

Allied World Assurance Company Holdings AG: Sarah Doran, '03, has joined as treasurer and senior vice president, investor relations, based in the firm's New York office. The insurance and reinsurance company is headquartered in Zug, Switzerland.

Amerisafe Inc.: Michael Grasher, '96, has joined as CFO. The DeRidder, Louisiana-based company specializes in providing workers' compensation insurance in such industries as logging, construction, trucking, agribusiness, and manufacturing.

Bessemer Venture Partners: Aviad Ariel, '06, has been promoted to vice president from senior associate in the Herzliya, Israel office, one of several around the world. The venture capital investment fund is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Cars.com: Barbara Mousigian, '89, has joined as vice president of product at the Chicago-based online site for buying and selling new and used cars.

Chicago Equity Partners LLC: Paul LaCoursiere, '02, has been named managing director and senior fixed income portfolio manager. An affiliate of the Affiliated Managers Group, the Chicago-based institutional money manager works with some of the world's largest public pension plans, corporations, endowments, foundations, and Taft-Hartley plans.

Clean Energy Trust: Erik Birkerts, '96, has joined as executive vice president and chief operating officer. The Chicago-based nonprofit clean-tech business accelerator receives US Department of Energy and Small Business Administration grants and donations from investors, corporations, universities, foundations, and trade groups.

Causeway Capital Management LLC: Foster Corwith, '06, has been appointed portfolio manager at the Los Angeles–based investment management services fund.

Cooley LLP: Matthew Karlyn, '04, has joined as partner and member of the firm's technology transactions practice group. The law firm works with businesses of all sizes from offices throughout the United States and in Shanghai.

Cytomedix Inc.: Steven Shallcross, '94, has been named executive vice president, CFO, secretary, and treasurer. The Gaithersburg, Maryland-based biotech firm focuses on stem cell technologies in the orthopedics and wound care fields.

Educational Housing Services Inc.: Dale Anne Reiss, '70, has been elected a member of the board of directors. The New York–based nonprofit group aims to supply safe and convenient off-campus housing for college students in New York City. Reiss is former senior partner and global and Americas director of real estate at Ernst &Young LLP.

Federal Signal Corp.: Brian Cooper, '84, has been appointed senior vice president and CFO. The Oak Brook, Illinois-based company makes safety products such as alarms and warning sirens, as well as emergency vehicle apparatus and industrial equipment.

Fiat Group Automobiles India Private Ltd. and Chrysler India Automotive Private Ltd.: Nagesh Basavanhalli, '98, has been promoted to president and managing director for Fiat and Chrysler India operations from head of Chrysler India Automotive Private Ltd. Chrysler is headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan and Fiat in Turin, Italy.

First Citizens Bancshares Inc.: Glen McCoy,'76, has been promoted to CFO of the firm and its subsidiary, Raleigh, North Carolina–based First Citizens Bank. He had been the bank's executive vice president of finance.

Gas Technology Institute: Edward Johnston, '13 (XP-82), has been appointed vice president of research operations for the research, development, and training organization that develops technology for the energy and environmental fields.

Jarislowsky Fraser Ltd: Dan Hanson, '98, has joined as co-manager, US investment portfolio. Based in Montreal, the firm is one of Canada's largest investment managers.

Kaman Corp.: Robert Starr, '97, has been promoted to CFO from treasurer at the Bloomfield, Connecticut-based aerospace technology company.

Lake Forest Graduate School of Management: Carlos Minetti, '86, has been elected to the board of directors. The independent, nonprofit school has campuses in Schaumburg and Lake Forest, Illinois. Minetti is president of consumer banking and operations at Riverwoods, Illinois-based Discover Financial Services.

Lincoln International LLC: Barry Freeman, '03, has been named managing director in the health care investment banking practice. The Chicago-headquartered independent international mid-market investment bank focuses on mergers and acquisitions.

Livingstone Partners LLC: Andrew Bozzelli, '10, Thomas Lesch, '10, and James Moskal, '00, have been promoted to principals at the Chicago-headquartered independent international investment banking firm. Bozzelli remains vice president and Moskal, managing director in the health care practice. Lesch has led the debt capital markets practice.

Nutrisystem Inc.: Mike Monahan, '02, has returned as CFO. The weight loss company is headquartered in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania.

Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Carolinas: Leon James Hendrix, '03, has been named board chair. Based in Greenville, South Carolina, the nonprofit organization provides programs and services to families who have had to travel for specialized medical care for their children. Hendrix is president and co-owner of design and screen-printing Graphic Cow Co., located in Liberty, South Carolina.

Sikich LLP: Paul Detlefs, '80, has been appointed to the newly formed advisory board of the Naperville, Illinois-based accounting and advisory firm. Detlefs is founder and president of The Prestwick Group, a Des Plaines, Illinois-based consultancy for small to mid-sized businesses.

Stem Inc.: Michael Allman, '85, has been named as a new advisor to the Millbrae, California-based energy efficiency company. Allman is the former chair, president, and CEO of Southern California Gas Co.

Telos Group LLC: William Flatt, '05, has joined the Chicago-based leasing firm as chief operating officer.

Thrive Capital: Jon Winkelried, AB '81, MBA '82, has joined as strategic advisor. The New York–based venture capital firm aims to expand its investment reach from internet start-ups to health care, financial services, and education.

ViaSat Inc.: Bruce Dirks, '92, has joined the Carlsbad, California-based satellite networking company as CFO.

Virginia's Commission on Military Installations and Defense Activities: Bob Wood, '81, has been appointed a commission member by Governor Bob McDonnell. The new Richmond-based commission was created to examine economic effects within Virginia of defense budget cuts resulting from sequestration. Wood is a retired lieutenant general.

Melita Garza, '07 (EXP-12), assistant professor at Texas Christian University, has won a prize for best doctoral dissertation regarding mass communication history. The 2013 Margaret A. Blanchard Doctoral Dissertation Prize was awarded by the American Journalism Historians Association. Garza received the $500 prize for her dissertation "They Came to Toil: News Frames of Wanted and Unwanted Mexicans in the Great Depression."

Goldman Sachs advisory director Edith Hunt, '74, has been inducted into the New Jersey Business Hall of Fame by Junior Achievement of New Jersey. At Goldman, Hunt started programs for women and members of the LGBT community, said an April 12 Jersey Journal article. "I believe strongly in notions of equality and a fundamental sense that anyone can succeed in business if given the appropriate opportunities, guidance, and sponsorship," Hunt said in the article.

James Morgan, '93, left his career in banking consulting to found nonprofit software start-up Meet the Need, which links volunteers and recipients with food banks, Habitat for Humanity, churches, and other charitable organizations. Meet the Need offers its software for free. "I had turned 30 and had done all the things I was supposed to do" but it wasn't satisfying, Morgan said in a feature article that ran April 7 in the Tampa Tribune. He had his "crisis of conscience" in 2000 and conceived of Meet the Need while traveling for his job. "If you can shop online for things you want to buy, why can't you shop online for people who need what you have to give?" Morgan said.

Gary Cohen, '88
CEO
EZLinks Golf Inc.
The Chicago-based online golf reservations network has more than 200 employees.

Hirofumi Hirano, '89
Managing Director and CEO
KKR Japan Ltd.
Global private equity investment firm KKR & Company LP is headquartered in New York. The Japan branch is based in Tokyo.