
The University of New Mexico
NEWS RELEASE
Media Contact: Steve Carr, (505) 277-1821, scarr@unm.edu
May 10, 2006
UNM Foundation Elects Six New Board Members; Five Members Re-Elected
The University of New Mexico Foundation elected six new members and re-elected five members to its Board of Directors recently. New members include: Carl Alongi, Laura Heuter Bass, John Córdova, James Ellis, Sonnet McKinnon and Robert Murphy.
Re-elected members include: Dr. George Omer, 3rd term; Dorothy Rainosek, 3rd term; Michael Emerson, 2nd term; Lou Weller, 2nd term; and Anne Yegge, 2nd term. All board terms are through June 30, 2009.
Board Emeriti include: Ed Lewis, Robert Matteucci, Leonard Napolitano, Mary Poole, Jack Rust, Dr. Albert Simms, Robert Stamm and Robert Wertheim.
Board officers include: Robert Bovinette, chair; Thelma Domenici, vice chair; and Dorothy Rainosek, secretary. They join Michael Carroll, president of the UNM Foundation and vice president of Institutional Advancement, and David Harris, treasurer and acting UNM president, as officers on the Board of Directors.
Alongi is a co-founder and shareholder of the Albuquerque-based accounting firm Pulakos & Alongi, Ltd. Established in 1968, Pulakos & Alongi is one of the top accounting firms in New Mexico. In 2001, Alongi stepped down as managing shareholder of the firm to become a financial advisor for CPA Wealth Advisors, a Limited Liability Corporation affiliated with Pulakos & Alongi and continues as director of the firm's Management Consulting Services Division.
Alongi, who received his BBA from the Anderson Schools in 1965 and is a member of the Schools' Hall of Fame (1995), currently serves on several boards of directors including the TVI Foundation, the Albuquerque Academy Foundation and CPA Mutual Insurance Company to name a few.
Bass was the executive director executive of the Albuquerque Community Foundation for more than 14 years. Under her leadership, the foundation's permanent assets grew from $5 million to $40 million, with $14 million in grant awards distributed during that period. Bass has formed seven successful giving programs during her tenure, including the ‘Future Fund' and ‘The Corporate Partners in Philanthropy' annual campaign.
Bass received her bachelor's degree from University College in 1973 and her masters in Public Administration in 1980, both from UNM.
Córdova is owner and president of Hirst Córdova Public Relations, a company he worked for as a senior counselor prior to purchasing it in 1997. Córdova has an extensive background in public affairs, issues management and community relations, and has worked in both, the public and private sectors.
A UNM alum, Córdova earned a bachelor of sciences degree graduating in 1961. He currently serves on the Dean's Advisory Council for the University Libraries and is past chairman of the board of trustees of University of New Mexico Hospital and is a member of the UNM Alumni Letterman's Association.
Ellis is the senior executive director of Global Initiatives at the University of Southern California (USC) and is the former vice dean of USC's Marshall School of Business. He has been named Professor of the Year by many organizations during his time on the USC campus. In 2002-03, he was awarded the ‘Golden Apple' award by student vote and the ‘Teaching Has No Boundaries' award by a panel of his colleagues.
Outside of academia, Ellis has served as CEO or president of three companies, the chairman of the Board for three others, and a member of the board of directors for nine organizations. Ellis received his Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) from the Anderson Schools in 1968.
McKinnon went into business with her father manufacturing microbrewery systems after graduating from UNM's Anderson Schools of Management with a BBA in 1993.
She currently mentors scholarship recipients in connection with Reach for Prep, a non-profit organization that helps Black and Latino students from lower income families attain a quality independent school education. The organization provides rigorous academic preparation to support student's application to competitive independent schools. REACH Prep has served families in Connecticut and New York for 10 years.
Murphy is a real estate developer/broker and president of Sandia Properties Ltd. He is director and former president of Sandia Peak Ski/Tram Companies. In 1996, he launched Ventana Ranch, the first master-planned residential community on Albuquerque 's Westside. He was also the original developer for Albuquerque 's Sandia Heights.
A member of the UNM President's Club, Murphy received the Anderson Schools Hall of Fame Award in 1997. He earned his BBA in Accounting from ASM in 1972 and served on the Anderson Schools of Management Foundation Board from 1999-2001.
The University of New Mexico is the state's largest university, serving more than 32,000 students. UNM is home to the state's only schools of law, medicine, pharmacy and architecture and operates New Mexico's only academic health center. UNM is noted for comprehensive undergraduate programs and research that benefits the state and the nation.
www.unm.edu