Barnard College Board Chair Jolyne Caruso-FitzGerald ’81 and Barnard President Debora Spar today announced several new members of the College’s Board of Trustees. Six newly appointed trustees include Golden Globe-winning actor Dylan McDermott, executive coach and leadership development consultant Terry Newman ’79, telecommunications executive Allen Salmasi, Warren Wilson College President Steven Solnick, Brazilian philanthropist Carolina Steinbruch, and renowned choreographer Twyla Tharp ’63.
“As we enter Barnard’s 125th anniversary year, I am delighted to welcome our new Board members whose diverse expertise and visionary thinking will be essential to the future of the College,” said Caruso-FitzGerald, board chair since 2010.
“It is an exciting moment at Barnard, as we undertake the largest capital campaign in the College’s history, and prepare to build an innovative new teaching and learning facility in the heart of our campus. Our incoming trustees will bring fresh perspectives and new ideas during this pivotal time,” said President Spar.
The Trustees of Barnard College are responsible for the overall governance and stewardship of the College, including the selection of the president and other senior administrative and faculty appointments, oversight of strategic direction and large-scale programmatic initiatives, and supervision of the endowment and budget.
Dylan McDermott is a Golden Globe award-winning actor. His television credits include The Practice, American Horror Story, Hostages, and the upcoming Stalker on CBS. His feature films include Hamburger Hill, Steel Magnolias, In the Line of Fire, Wonderland, The Campaign, Olympus has Fallen, and the upcoming Survivor and Automata. He is the proud parent of a Barnard student.
Terry Newman ’79 is a certified executive coach and CEO of Newman Management Consulting, an executive coaching, leadership-development and business-consulting firm. She also works as a coach/facilitator with executives at Fortune 500 Leadership Conferences and with Columbia Business School and Executive MBA students. Previously, Newman spent over 28 years in senior roles in the financial services industry including as a managing director at Credit Suisse Asset Management (formerly BEA Associates) and Iridian Asset Management, and as a principal at Armstrong Shaw Associates. She was a vice president at Bankers Trust and worked at Instinet Corporation in institutional sales. In addition to her role with Newman Management, Newman is a principal for a group of specialized finance and real-estate companies. She is a member of the Connecticut Women’s Business Development Council and a former board member of the United Jewish Federation of Stamford, New Canaan, and Darien. The incoming president of the Alumnae Association of Barnard College (AABC), Newman also serves on the Athena Leadership Council and has chaired the reunion awards committee. Previously she was vice president of the AABC, fund chair for her class and member of several AABC committees.
Allen Salmasi is currently chairman of NLabs Inc., a New York-based venture capital firm. He previously served as chairman and CEO of NextWave Wireless Inc. (NWI), a company he formed in 2005 that was subsequently acquired by AT&T in 2013. Prior to NWI, he founded NextWave Telecom Inc. (NTI), which was acquired by Verizon Wireless in 2005. Prior to NextWave, Mr. Salmasi was a member of the board of directors, president of the Wireless Communications Division, and chief strategic officer of QUALCOMM Inc. He initiated and led the development of wireless business, including chipset and handset products, licensing and standards programs globally at QUALCOMM. Before QUALCOMM, at Omninet Corporation, a company he founded in 1984 and merged with QUALCOMM in 1988, he envisioned and led the development of the OmniTRACS system and service, the world's first and currently the largest commercial terrestrial mobile satellite communications service. Additionally, Mr. Salmasi is chairman of two pharmaceutical companies, OncoSynergy Inc. and NexGenix Pharmaceuticals Inc. He is also a member of the board of directors of Korea Information and Communications Corporation, and a former member of the Fordham University Parents Leadership Council. He is the parent of a Barnard student.
Steven Solnick has been the seventh president of Warren Wilson College since 2012. Warren Wilson College is a private liberal arts college located in North Carolina, near Asheville. The school is known for its curriculum of work, academics, and service, called “The Triad.” Solnick previously spent a decade as the Ford Foundation representative in Moscow and then in New Delhi, where he provided leadership and direction to the foundation’s work in the areas of human rights, higher education, arts and culture, sustainable agriculture, and reproductive health. Before joining the Ford Foundation, he was associate professor of political science at Columbia University, where he also served as coordinator for Russian studies at the Harriman Institute. Solnick has been a full member of the Council on Foreign Relations since 2001. He has also served as president of the board of the American Embassy School of New Delhi.
Carolina Steinbruch was previously a member of the Women’s Committee for the Federation of Industries of São Paulo (FIESP). She has also been involved with the Congregação Israelita Paulista (CIP), one of the largest synagogues in Latin America, which promotes a diverse number of activities: religious services, Jewish study groups, activities for senior citizens, fields of study, and youth groups. Together with her husband, Benjamin, who is chairman and chief executive officer of CSN (Companhia Siderurgica Nacional), one of Brazil’s largest steel manufacturers, Steinbruch was selected as part of the first group of Young Leaders of Tomorrow at the World Economic Forum at Davos in 1991. The Steinbruchs were instrumental in the success of Barnard’s 2013 Global Symposium in São Paulo. They are the parents of a Barnard alumna.
Since graduating from Barnard, Twyla Tharp ’63 has choreographed more than 129 dances, 12 television specials, six feature films, four full-length ballets, four Broadway shows, and two Olympic figure-skating routines. She has received a Tony Award, two Emmy Awards, 19 honorary doctorates, and a 2008 Kennedy Center Honor for her work. Tharp is the author of three books: Push Comes to Shove, The Creative Habit: Learn it and Use it for Life, and The Collaborative Habit: Life Lessons for Working Together. She also guides the Twyla Tharp Dance Foundation, an organization that archives and digitizes her past and present works, as well as supports the creation of new works and the development and implementation of educational programs. Tharp will serve as a Distinguished Guest Artist at Barnard during the 2014–2015 academic year. She received the Barnard Medal of Distinction in 1982, and Barnard’s Woman of Achievement Award in 1993. Photo Courtesy of The Richard Avedon Foundation/ © Richard Avadon.
