Board of Trustees

The foundation’s Board of Trustees is elected annually in November for three-year terms. Board members are responsible for providing governance, advocacy, and philanthropic support to advance the mission of the foundation. One-quarter of the trustees are appointed by the University’s Board of Regents. Below are the current foundation Trustees.

Officers

Kenneth C. Glaser, Chair
President
K. Charles Development

Abdul M. Omari, PhD, Vice Chair
CEO and Founder 
AMO Enterprise
Regent Emeritus 
University of Minnesota

Roger J. Sit, Treasurer
Chairman
Sit Investment Associates

Jacqueline R. Williams-Roll, Past Chair
Chief Human Resources Officer
General Mills

Thomas G. Olson, Secretary
Retired Managing Director
Prime Mortgage

Kathleen M. Schmidlkofer, CEO and President
University of Minnesota Foundation

Christine K. Searson, CFO and VP of Finance
University of Minnesota Foundation

Other members

Wemimo S. Abbey, MPA
Co-Founder and Co-CEO
Esusu Inc.

Blythe A. Brenden*
Founder 
Blythe Brenden-Mann Foundation

Dorothy J. Bridges 
Interim President and CEO 
Meda

Lynn Casey 
Former Chair and CEO 
PadillaCRT

Rebecca A. Crooks-Stratton* 
Former Secretary and Treasurer 
Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community

Rebecca M. Cunningham, MD
President 
University of Minnesota

Mary A. Davenport* 
Regent 
University of Minnesota

Kathie J. Eiland-Madison 
Chief Engagement & Inclusion Officer
Delta Dental of Minnesota

Acooa Ellis 
Founder and Principal Strategist
ABLE Endeavors

Michael B. Fiterman* 
Chairman 
Liberty Diversified International

W. Anders Folk, JD
Attorney
Jones Day

Julie E. Gilbert 
CEO and Founder
Full Throttle Growth

Pahoua Hoffman 
SVP, Government & Community Relations
HealthPartners

Hoyt M. Hsiao 
President and CEO 
Shaw-Lundquist Construction

Douglas A. Huebsch* 
Regent, University of Minnesota 
President, Goose Group, Inc.

Michael H. Johnson 
Chairman 
Johnson Brothers Liquor

Ruth E. Johnson, MD* 
Regent, University of Minnesota 
Physician, Mayo Clinic

James K. Lee, JD
Partner 
Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer

Michael P. Lehan, EdD 
District Vice President
Fusion Education Group

Beth Kieffer Leonard 
Partner
Eisner Advisory Group LLC

Ross Levin 
CEO and Founder 
Accredited Investors Inc.

John E. Lindahl* 
Former Chairman 
Norwest Equity Partners

Laurie M. Marsh 
EVP and Chief Human Resources Officer 
Ecolab

David J. McMillan, JD
Former Executive Vice President
Minnesota Power

Katherine A. Nelson, PhD
Former CEO
Cotton Patch Cafe

Lea B. Olsen
Broadcaster
Bally Sports North

Lisa Opoku, JD 
Chief Operating Officer
FS Investments

Bethany M. Owen, JD 
Chair, President, and CEO 
ALLETE, Inc.

Lynne S. Redleaf, JD 
President 
Lynne & Andrew Redleaf Foundation

Michael F. Roman* 
Chief Executive Officer 
3M Co.

Ty R. Silberhorn 
President and CEO 
Apogee Enterprises

Philip E. Soran* 
Technology Entrepreneur 
Lead Director 
Piper Sandler

Esta E. Stecher, JD 
Retired Partner 
The Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Nancy W. Stefani 
Independent Trustee, Eaton Vance Mutual Funds 
Corporate Director, Rimes Technologies

Darrell A. Thompson 
President 
Bolder Options

Peter A. Vorbrich (on leave)
Retired CFO 
CarVal Investors

Bradford W. Wallin* 
Founding Trustee
Wallin Education Partners

Theresa B. Ward 
Managing Director, Private Wealth 
Merrill Lynch

* Regent-nominated trustees