2010 Alumni Board Elections
Last Friday, October 9th, at our first annual Alumni Assembly Meeting, several new members of our Alumni Board were elected to serve in 2010.
According to the Constitution & By-laws of the Alumni Association (adopted on December 1, 2007 and available upon request to the Alumni Office), members of the Alumni Board are elected by the members of the Alumni Assembly and the officers are elected by the Alumni Board itself. The Assembly is made up of the leaders of both alumni and student organizations. In order to ensure the greatest possible participation by all constituencies, particularly in this first year, we interpreted these words broadly to include every alumna/us who has volunteered in some capacity for the law school last year. This resulted in over 900 Assembly members, which is a wonderful reflection on the type of alumni that we have at BC Law. Some examples of groups that were included in the Assembly are the alumni mentors, admissions and career services volunteers, reunion committee members, members of our Board of Overseers, Alumni Board and Business Advisory Councils, and the leaders of our student organizations.
There are two ways to be placed on the ballot for a Board position. A member of the Assembly may independently nominate candidates by petition signed by one-third of the membership of the Assembly and submitted in advance of the Assembly- notice of this was sent to the Assembly over the summer. Alternatively, an alumna/us may be nominated by the Committee on Nominations, which is led by the President-elect. This year, the Committee on Nominations consisted of President-Elect, Denis Cohen '76, Adam Baker '08, David Delaney '03, Christine Kelly '97, Elaine Ventola '94 and Kevin Curtin '88.
The candidates below were put forth as a slate by the Committee on Nominations (it should be noted that there were no independent nominations for Board candidates by Assembly members this year). Assembly members voted in person at the Assembly meeting on October 9th at BC Law School and, if they were unable to attend the meeting, sent in their proxies to Christine Kelly, Assistant Dean for Alumni Relations.
The following candidates were elected to the Alumni Board for 2010:
Mark Warner '89, Alumni Programs
Mark Warner is a partner at Witmer Karp, Warner & Ryan LLP where he concentrates his practice in divorce and other family law cases, as well as contested probate matters. A native of Boston, he is a graduate of Boston College and Boston College Law School. Mark is a past President of the Massachusetts Family and Probate American Inn of Court, former member of the Boston Bar Association Council and its Executive Committee, past chair of the BBA’s Education Committee and past co-chair of its Family Law Section, and was a member of the Guardian ad litem Standards Review Committee of the Probate and Family Court.
Mark is the current BC Law Boston Alumni Chapter Leader and awardee of the 1st annual Boston Chapter Law Day Award. He is also a member of the Law Day Committee.
Ingrid Chiemi Schroffner ‘95, Affinity Groups
Ingrid joined the Executive Office of Health and Human Services as Assistant General Counsel in April 2008, after practicing at Burns Levinson LLP since 1998. Ingrid also previously clerked for Chief Justice Warner (Massachusetts Appeals Court), the Massachusetts Superior Court justices, and worked at Davis, Malm D'Agostine PC. Ingrid is the immediate past president of the Asian American Lawyers of Massachusetts ("AALAM") and has served on its Board since 2002. She was recently elected to the Boston Bar Association ("BBA") Council, having served on its Diversity Leadership Task Force, Family Law and New Lawyers Steering Committees, and currently, on the Diversity and Inclusion Steering Committee.
While President of AALAM, Ingrid was part of a new effort by and among affinity bar associations to work together on joint events and forge alliances on cross-cutting issues. She lent that experience to the successful March 2009 BC Law School Diversity Bar Review event. When she spoke at the annual BC Law Asian Pacific American Law Student Association banquet in May, she also emphasized the importance of connectivity by and among one's community. This past year, Ingrid also served on the BC Law Boston Alumni Chapter Leadership Team.
Ingrid graduated from Boston College (Phi Beta Kappa), summa cum laude, and Boston College Law School (White, Inker, Aronson Professional Achievement Service Award and Campbell Fellowship Recipient).
Earl Adams, Jr. '02, Communications and Media
Earl Adams, Jr. is the Chief of Staff to the Lieutenant Governor of Maryland. He is responsible for managing all aspects of the office and ensuring implementation of the Lt. Governor’s policy and legislative agendas. Prior to this position, Earl was an associate with Hogan & Hartson L.L.P and Shipley & Horne, P.A., in Largo, Maryland.
Earl received a BA in Psychology, with honors, from Morehouse College and in 2002 graduated from BC Law and the Harvard Kennedy School, where he earned a Master’s degree in Public Administration.
In law school, Earl was active in the Black Law Students Association, served as Vice President of the BC Law ABA chapter, and was a volunteer for the Admissions department in reviewing student applications.
He is the recipient of numerous honors and is an active member of the NAACP, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. and the Boy Scouts of America. He also continues to volunteer his time to the BC Law Admissions office.
In addition, the following alumni were elected as officers of the Alumni Board for 2010:
Denis Cohen '77, President
Denis has been a judge in the Court of Common Please, First Judicial District of Pennsylvania, for nearly a decade. Prior to that he spent 25 years in the Philadelphia district Attorney's Office working as an Assistant District Attorney. Denis is the current President Elect of the Alumni Board. He is a past president of the Philadelphia Chapter and was a member of the former Alumni Council.
Marty Ebel '94, President Elect
Marty has been a Commissioner at the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD) since 2006. Prior to joining the MCAD, Marty worked in private practice at several law firms while specializing in the field of employment law. Marty is currently the Secretary of the Alumni Board, and was a member of the former Alumni Council.
George Field '78, Vice President
George is a Partner at Verrill Dana, LLP. In addition to his trial work, George is a leader in the Boston legal community for his community service and pro bono work. George was a member of the former Alumni Council, has chaired the Law Day Committee for several years, and is currently our Alumni Board Member for Alumni Programs.
Chris Dillon '88, Secretary
Chris is a Partner at Union Square Advisors in San Francisco, a financial and strategic advisory firm focusing on the technology sector. Prior to joining Union Square Advisors, Chris led the Mergers & Acquisitions practice Gunderson Dettmer, a leading Silicon Valley law firm. Chris is currently the Treasurer of the Alumni Board.
Barbara Cusumano '08, Treasurer
Barbara is an attorney at The Legal Aid Society, Juvenile Rights Practice in New York. She is an experienced volunteer both as a student and an alumna. She was LSA Vice President as a student and led her class gift effort to record highs of giving and participation. She is currently the New York Chapter Leader.