Madison, N.J. – Drew University’s Board of Trustees is adding six new members.
The newcomers bring experience in executive recruitment, investment banking, public policy, software automation and business operations. In addition, three are graduates of Drew.
The Board meets regularly to provide direction and set policy for Drew, now in its 150th year. In September, for example, trustees approved a plan to reduce tuition by 20 percent next year to make education more affordable to more students. Details on the initiative can be found here.
The Board, which now has 35 members—including President MaryAnn Baenninger—is chaired by Dean Criares and includes representatives of the university’s Caspersen School of Graduate Studies and Drew Theological School. Here’s a closer look at the new trustees:
Joyce Brocaglia – Brocaglia is CEO of Alta Associates, an executive search firm that specializes in cyber security, IT risk management and security, and founder and CEO of the Executive Women’s Forum on Information Security, Risk Management and Privacy. She has a bachelor’s from Montclair State University.
Gregory Gordon – Gordon, a 1992 graduate of Drew and an alumni-elected trustee for the College of Liberal Arts, is senior managing director and head of power and utilities research at Evercore, an independent investment banking advisory firm.
Gaetana Kopchinsky – Kopchinsky, an alumni-elected trustee for the Caspersen School, is an adjunct professor at Caspersen and philanthropist who works with therapeutic narrative programs in clinical and rehabilitative settings. She has bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees from Drew.
Sanjay Mirchandani – Mirchandani, a 1986 graduate of Drew, is president and CEO of Puppet, which automates the delivery and operation of software for more than 36,000 companies. He also has a master’s from the University of Pittsburgh.
Andrés Peñate – Peñate is vice president of regulatory and public policy at Anheuser-Busch InBev. He has an undergraduate degree from the Universidad de los Andes and a master’s from St. Antony’s College at the University of Oxford.
Suneet Varma – Varma is a global president within Pfizer’s Essential Health business group. He has a bachelor’s from Tufts University and a master’s from Harvard Business School.
About Drew University
Drew University, a Phi Beta Kappa liberal arts university, includes the College of Liberal Arts, the Drew Theological School and the Caspersen School of Graduate Studies. Drew is located on a beautiful, wooded, 186-acre campus in Madison, New Jersey, a thriving small town close to New York City. It has a total enrollment of more than 2,000 students and 145 full-time faculty members, with 94 percent holding the terminal degree in their field. The Theological and Caspersen Schools offer MA and PhD degrees and the College confers BA degrees in 30 disciplines.
Drew is dedicated to exceptional faculty mentorship, a commitment to connecting the campus with the community and a focus on experiential learning. Particularly noteworthy opportunities for undergraduates include the Charles A. Dana Research Institute for Scientists Emeriti (RISE), home of 2015 Nobel Prize Winner for Medicine and Drew Fellow William Campbell, the Drew Summer Science Institute, the Center for Civic Engagement, six semesters in New York City (Wall Street, United Nations, Contemporary Art, Communications and Media, Social Entrepreneurship and Theatre) and several international semester programs. The University also houses the Center for Civic Engagement, the Drew Summer Science Institute, the Center for Religion, Culture & Conflict, the Center for Holocaust/Genocide Study and The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, an independent professional theater, as well as the United Methodist Archives and History Center and one of the country’s leading concentrations of materials on Willa Cather.
