University Park, Pa. – Penn State alumni, delegates of agricultural societies and the board (representatives of business and industry endeavors) recently elected five incumbents and two new members to serve on the University’s Board of Trustees.
University alumni re-elected incumbents Steve A. Garban, chairman of the Board of Trustees at Penn State and a member of the Board of Directors at The Milton S. Hershey Medical Center; and Paul V. Suhey, orthopedic surgeon and partner at Martin and Suhey Orthopedics; and elected Stephanie Nolan Deviney, attorney of the law firm of Fox Rothschild LLP in Exton, Pa., replacing George T. Henning, Jr.
Delegates of agricultural societies re-elected Keith W. Eckel, owner of Fred W. Eckel Sons and president of Eckel Farms, Inc., and board member of Nationwide, one of the largest diversified insurance and financial companies in the world; and Samuel E. Hayes Jr., former lawmaker and legislative leader for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
The board elected two trustees representing business and industry: incumbent John P. Surma, chairman and chief executive officer of the United States Steel Corporation; and new member Karen B. Peetz, chief executive officer of Financial Markets and Treasury Services, BNY Mellon, replacing Ted Junker, who, after 24 years of service on the Board, opted not to seek re-election.
The term of each trustee elected is three years, beginning July 1 and expiring on June 30, 2013.
Incumbents re-elected by alumni
Steve A. Garban
Garban is chairman of the Board of Trustees at Penn State and a member of the Board of Directors at The Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. He also is the senior vice president for finance and operations and treasurer emeritus of the University. In Boston, he serves as the director of Metropolitan Life Series Fund and is the lead independent director. Garban completed a 33-year career at the University, where he served as an officer for 22 years, 10 as controller and 12 as senior vice president/treasurer. He oversaw Penn State's nationally recognized athletic program and its entrance into the Big Ten and was pivotal in the development of The Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, The Nittany Lion Inn, the Bryce Jordan Center and Innovation Park. In tribute to his work, Garban received the Award for Administrative Excellence in 1993 and was named a Distinguished Alumnus in 1995. He graduated from Penn State in 1959 with a bachelor of science degree in business. He was first elected to the Board of Trustees in July 1998.
Paul V. Suhey
Suhey is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon and partner at Martin and Suhey Orthopedics. He practices orthopedics and sports medicine in central Pennsylvania. He was previously chief of orthopedics and director of sports medicine at Riverside Hospital and vice chairman of orthopedics at St. Vincent's Medical Center. He co-founded the Atlantic Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Center and was clinical assistant professor at the University of North Florida. He is treasurer of the medical staff at Mount Nittany Medical Center and serves on the medical executive committee. Suhey, a third-generation Penn State graduate, received his bachelor's degree from Penn State in 1979. He is a life member of the Penn State Alumni Association, the Football Letterman's Club and a member of the President's Circle. Suhey was first elected to the Board of Trustees in July 1998.
New member elected by alumni
Stephanie Nolan Deviney
Deviney is an attorney of the law firm of Fox Rothschild LLP in Exton, Pa. She is a member of the firm’s litigation department and the construction law group. She has considerable experience representing contractors and subcontractors in commercial litigation matters. Deviney is a 1997 graduate of The Dickinson School of Law of the Pennsylvania State University. As a law student, she was president of the Women’s Law Caucus and a member of the Student Bar Association. She served as comments editor for the Dickinson Law Review and was a member of the National Trial Competition Team. She is currently the secretary/treasurer for the General Alumni Association of the Dickinson School of Law and president of the Delchester Chapter of the association. She currently serves as a member of the Women Build Committee for Chester County Habitat for Humanity.
Incumbents re-elected by agricultural societies
Keith W. Eckel
Eckel is a board member of Nationwide, one of the largest diversified insurance and financial companies in the world. He was first elected to the board in 1996 and has served as board chairman of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, the parent company of the Nationwide organization, since April 2008. He is the former board chairman of Gartmore Global Asset Management Trust and Allied Group Inc. and the former director of Nationwide Financial Services. Eckel is owner of Fred W. Eckel Sons and president of Eckel Farms Inc. in northeast Pennsylvania. Among agricultural organizations, Eckel is a former board member of the Pennsylvania Vegetable Growers Association, the Pennsylvania Agricultural Land Preservation Board and the Board for International Food and Agricultural Development. He is a former president of the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, a position he held for 15 years, and the Lackawanna County Cooperative Extension. He has held various positions with the American Farm Bureau Federation, and served as vice president of the Pennsylvania Council of Cooperative Extension Association, which he helped establish. He is a former member of the U.S. Agricultural Policy Advisory Committee and a charter member of the National Dairy Board. In 1998, he received the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau's Distinguished Service to Agriculture Award, and earned Penn State's Master Farmer Award in 1982. He was elected to the Board of Trustees in 2001.
Samuel E. Hayes Jr.
Hayes was a lawmaker and legislative leader for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1970 to 1992 where he served as majority leader and whip for the House. He also is the former Secretary of Agriculture for Pennsylvania and a U.S. Army veteran who earned the Bronze Star serving in the Vietnam War. He received his bachelor's degree in agriculture education in 1964 and his master of education degree in 1965, both from Penn State. His civic memberships include chairman of the Pennsylvania Farmland Preservation Board, the Pennsylvania Farm Show Commission, the Pennsylvania Animal Health Commission, the Hardwoods Development Council, the Agriculture Law Center Board and the Pennsylvania Fair Advisory Board. He also is a member of the Pennsylvania State Board of Education, Warriors Mark Grange, Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. Hayes has received many awards and honors, including the Outstanding Alumni Award from the College of Agricultural Sciences, and was named a Penn State Alumni Fellow. He was appointed to the Board of Trustees in March 2003 to fill an unexpired term. He was elected to the Board of Trustees in 2004 by delegates of agricultural societies, having previously served as a trustee from 1997 until 2003 as Secretary of Agriculture.
Re-elected member confirmed by the Board representing business and industry
John P. Surma
Surma is chairman and chief executive officer of the United States Steel Corporation in Pittsburgh. It is the largest integrated steel producer in the U.S. He was named president of the firm in March 2003 and president and chief operating officer in June 2003. He was elected president and chief executive officer in 2004, and chairman of the board of directors and chief executive officer in February 2006. Surma graduated from Penn State in 1976 with a bachelor of science degree in accounting. He joined Price Waterhouse LLP in 1976, and in 1981 served in the Manchester, England, office of the Price Waterhouse United Kingdom firm. In 1987 he was admitted to the partnership. In 1983 Surma participated in the President’s Executive Exchange Program in Washington, D.C., where he served as executive staff assistant to the vice chairman of the Federal Reserve Board. In 1997 he joined Marathon Oil Co. as senior vice president, finance and accounting. He was appointed president, Speedway SuperAmerica LLC in 1998, and senior vice president, supply & transportation for Marathon Ashland Petroleum LLC (MAP) in 2000. He was named president of MAP in 2001.
New member confirmed by the Board representing business and industry
Karen B. Peetz
Peetz is senior executive vice president responsible for financial markets and treasury services within BNY Mellon, a leading asset management and securities company and the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corp. Peetz was also the business manager responsible for corporate trust and led the integration of the JPMorgan asset swap in 2006. She managed the global payments business as well. Peetz joined The Bank of New York in 1998 to run the domestic corporate trust business. Before joining The Bank of New York, she spent 16 years with JPMorgan Chase and had several sales and business management positions, including an assignment in London. She also was a commercial lending officer. She is a member of BNY Mellon’s executive committee, the organization’s most senior management body. She also is the chairperson for the company’s Women’s Initiatives Network (WIN) and serves on its diversity council. She received her bachelor of science degree from Penn State and a master of science degree from Johns Hopkins University.
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Penn State's Board of Trustees is composed of six members appointed by the governor, nine members elected by alumni and six members each elected by agricultural societies and by the board representing business and industry endeavors. In addition, five members are ex officio by right of their office, including Gov. Edward G. Rendell; Penn State President Graham B. Spanier; Secretary of Agriculture Russell C. Redding; Acting Secretary of Education Thomas E. Gluck and Secretary of Conservation and Natural Resources John Quigley.
For more information on Penn State's board members, go to http://www.psu.edu/trustees/botmembership.html online.