By SUSAN JONES
Pitt’s full Board of Trustees will meet on May 8, and one of the issues it will take up will be the election of a chairperson and vice chair for the coming year.
On April 21, the board’s Governance and Nominating committee voted to recommend the re-election of current chair and vice chair, John Verbanac and Lisa Golden, who are both in their first year in those positions. The chair and vice chair can serve up to five one-year terms, which run from July to June.
Verbanac, president and CEO of the private equity and commercial real estate company Summa Development, is a 1991 graduate of Pitt’s College of General Studies and has been a trustee since 2007. Golden, an emergency room physician, is a former president of the Pitt Alumni Association with a 1993 bachelor’s degree in neuroscience from the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences and an MBA from the Katz Graduate School of Business. She has been a trustee since 2000.
The committee also voted to recommend revisions to the Statement of Trustee Commitment and Responsibilities, including the adoption of separate statements for non-voting ex-officio trustees and emeritus trustees. The changes are part of ongoing work by the board to improve governing practices.
The role of emeritus trustee gained attention in fall 2024 after longtime trustee John Pelusi Jr., who transitioned to emeritus status in July 2024, sued the board alleging he had been denied information relevant to his position. The two sides reached an agreement in February, but no details were released.
The role of emeritus trustee, which was changed in the bylaws last year, is limited to attending board meetings as an observer at the discretion of the board chairperson, and to serving as a non-voting member on certain committees, subject to the discretion of the chairs of those committees.
Other nominations
The committee nominated several candidates for term trustees and emeritus trustees. Some of those nominated for term trustee are transitioning from the role of special trustee, which is being phased out.
Candidates for re-election or election as term trustees:
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Majdi B. Abulaban (election — planned transition from special trustee to term trustee)
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Hui Debra Cen (election — planned transition from special trustee to term trustee)
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Sundaa Bridgett-Jones (re-election)
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Bryan S. Salesky (election — planned transition from special trustee to term trustee)
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Adam C. Walker (re-election)
Candidates for election to the honorary role of emeritus trustee:
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Eva Tansky Blum
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Mary Ellen Callahan
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David C. Chavern
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Roberta A. Luxbacher
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Larry J. Merlo
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Emil M. Spadafore Jr.
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David Tilstone
All of the nominations and recommendations from the Governance and Nominating committee must be voted on by the full board at its 1 p.m. May 8 meeting, which will be in the Assembly Room at William Pitt Union.
Susan Jones is editor of the University Times. Reach her at suejones@pitt.edu or 724-244-4042.
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