Trustee Nominations

Four alumni have been nominated to Duke's board of trustees by the executive committee of the board of directors of the Duke Alumni Association. Robin A. Ferracone '75, William A. (Bill) Hawkins B.S.E.'76, David M. Rubenstein '70, and Alan D. Schwartz '72, each would serve six-year terms, beginning July 1.

Hawkins, nominated to his first term on the board, is chairman and CEO of Medtronic, Inc., the largest independent medical device company in the world. Since graduating from Duke with a degree in electrical and biomedical engineering in 1976, he's worked for a number of biomedical companies and start-ups all over the United States and in London. Hawkins grew up in Durham and has lived in Minneapolis since 2002. He joined Medtronic from Novoste Corp., where he had been President and Chief Executive Officer since 1998. Read more.

Ferracone, a current board member nominated for a second term, is chief executive officer of RAF Capital and executive chair of Farient Advisors, both of which she founded. RAF Capital is a portfolio management company which makes strategic investments in HR-related businesses. In addition to investing, the company oversees and works with their portfolio companies to develop business, market, financial, and organization strategies. Farient Advisors, a core investment in the RAF Capital portfolio, is an independent executive compensation and performance advisory firm that provides performance-sensitive and defensible advice on executive pay. She was elected to the Duke University Board of Trustees in 2005, and serves on the Facilities and Environment and Human Resources Committees. Read more.

Rubenstein, also nominated to a second term, is co-founder and managing director of The Carlyle Group, one of the world's largest private equity firms. Since Rubenstein co-founded the firm in 1987, Carlyle has grown into a firm managing more than $85.5 billion from 28 offices around the world. Elected to the Duke University Board of Trustees in 2003, he currently is a member of the Executive Committee and serves on the Institutional Advancement Committee. He also chairs the Trustee-Faculty Committee on Honorary Degrees. Read more.

Schwartz, also nominated for a second term, is executive chairman of Guggenheim Partners, a global, independent and privately held financial services firm. He is the former chief executive officer of The Bear Stearns Companies. During his career with Bear Stearns, he served as president and chief operating officer, as executive vice president and co-head of investment banking, and in other financial management positions. A member of the Duke Board of Trustees since 2005, he is chair of the Academic Affairs Committee and serves on the Executive and Medical Center Academic Affairs Committees. Read more.

Duke's charter calls for the election of one-third of its trustees by graduates of the university. Every two years, in odd-numbered years, the terms of four of the twelve alumni trustees expire. The DAA's executive committee nominates and submits a list of names to the university secretary for submission to the trustees. Four names are then approved for final submission to the alumni body, with additional nominations permitted by petition.

After notice appears in print, alumni may submit a petition within thirty days signed by one-half of 1 percent of the alumni body (142,000) to nominate additional candidates.

Please send names and biographical information by Feb. 28, 2011, to Sterly Wilder '83, associate vice president for alumni affairs, Duke Alumni Association, Box 90572, Durham, NC 27708. Wilder maintains a confidential roster of alumni recommended as trustees and encourages alumni to submit nominations to her at any time.

The next election will take place in 2013.