Board approves budgets, begins governance study
The Dartmouth College Board of Trustees
announced a series of actions taken at its June 2007 meeting, including:
From left: Charles E. Haldeman Jr. '70, President James Wright, and William H.
Neukom '64. Haldeman was recently appointed chair of the Board of Trustees,
succeeding Neukom who completed his term on the Board following 11 years of
service. (Photo by Joseph Mehling '69)
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Haldeman, the new Board chair, has served as CEO at Putnam
since November 2003, having joined the firm as senior managing director and
investment head in the prior year. He previously served as CEO of Delaware
Investments and as president and chief operating officer of the United Asset
Management Corp. after 24 years with Cooke and Bieler Inc. He graduated summa
cum laude from Dartmouth, majoring in economics, earned Phi Beta Kappa honors,
and received M.B.A. and J.D. degrees from Harvard University in 1974. Haldeman
has served for many years in various Dartmouth volunteer leadership capacities,
including as a member of the Dean's Council and the President's Leadership
Council, as an Alumni Fund leadership agent, class agent and regional agent,
and as a scholarship fund chair. He was elected to the Dartmouth Board in
2004.
In a letter to
alumni (62kb, PDF), Haldeman wrote, "It is with enormous pride that I write
to you today as the new incoming chair of the Board of Trustees of Dartmouth
College. Like so many of you, the four years I spent on the Hanover Plain were
among the most rewarding of my life and shaped who I am today." He also wrote,
"Dartmouth has never been stronger than it is today."
Stephen F. Mandel Jr.'78, the new charter Trustee who
assumes Neukom's seat, is the founder of Lone Pine Capital (LPC), a financial
management firm he started in 1997. Prior to founding LPC, he was managing
director and consumer analyst at Tiger Management Corporation (1990-1997),
mass-market retailing analyst at Goldman Sachs (1984-1990) and consultant at
Mars and Company (1982-1984). Mandel graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy
(1974), Dartmouth College (1978), and Harvard Business School (1982). He is a
trustee of Teach for America and a former trustee of Phillips Exeter Academy
and The Children's School. He is also a founder and board member of the Lone
Pine Foundation, whose mission is to help children and families in the greater
New York City area.
"I greatly appreciate this opportunity to serve Dartmouth as a member of the
Board of Trustees," said Mandel, "and I'm excited about working with the rest
of the Board to keep the College a leading higher education institution that
contributes greatly to society."
President James Wright added, "I am delighted that Steve has joined the
Board and I look forward to working with him. His experience and talents will
be great assets to the College."
Mandel's appointment along with that of Stephen F.
Smith '88, elected in May to succeed Nancy K. Jeton '76, is
effective immediately.
Black and Fernandez, who were re-elected
for four-year terms, both joined the Board in June 2002. Black is the founding
principal of the New York investment firm Apollo Management LP. Fernandez is a
partner in the New York office of Latham & Watkins LLP and Global co-chair
of the firm's Latin America practice.
Budget approvals, governance
The Board also approved the operating and capital budgets for the
College, which included additional funds to support the faculty, including
startup costs and library acquisitions, enhanced stipends for graduate
students, and a financial aid budget of nearly $60 million. The capital budget
included funding to begin the Life Sciences Building project. The College plans
to begin construction of the facility later this year. Plans are also moving
forward for construction of a Visual Arts Center, the Class of 1953 Commons,
and a replacement for Thayer Dining Hall.
The Trustees approved a Statement on Governance and Trustee Responsibilities
that Chairman Neukom said grew out of a Board study started several years ago
and reflected the best practices for governing boards.
Review of Board size, composition, and selection
The Governance Committee of the Board also initiated a review of the
size, composition, and selection of Trustees to ensure the College has a strong
and effective governing body.
In a memo to the
full Board (73kb, PDF), the Governance Committee noted, "one of the most
important responsibilities of the Board is the selection of the members of the
Board. Consistent with that responsibility, the Board has on several occasions
over the past 50 years undertaken studies of the size, composition, and method
of selection of members of the Board. This was last done comprehensively in
1990. At the 2003 meeting, based on a brief study, the Board resolved to expand
gradually from 16 to 22 members. Since that time, numerous questions have been
raised about whether the size, makeup, and selection processes are adequate to
address the educational challenges facing the College now and in the
future."
The memo continues, "Concerns have also been expressed about whether the
processes for nominating Trustees might be improved and whether there are
alternatives that would better serve the interests of the College. The Alumni
Trustee nomination process has recently taken on the characteristics of a
political campaign, becoming increasingly contentious, divisive, and costly for
the participants. Alumni have also raised questions about the fairness of the
multiple-candidate, approval-voting, and plurality-winner features of the
process. We believe a highly politicized process for Trustee selection—and one
which may dissuade many highly qualified alumni from seeking nomination—may not
be in the best interests of Dartmouth or its students."
For these reasons, the Governance Committee initiated a review "to evaluate
in a comprehensive manner the size and composition of the Board and the method
of Trustee selection in order to ensure that Dartmouth has the optimal
governing body going forward." The Governance Committee—one of the standing
committees of the Board, which is chaired by Trustee Christine Bucklin
'84—expects to report back to the full Board at its September meeting. In
addition to Bucklin, other members of the Governance Committee are Ed Haldeman
'70, John Donahoe '82, Michael Chu '68, and James Wright.
Bucklin said that as part of its review, the committee will solicit input
from Trustees, Trustees emeriti, alumni leadership, and other members of the
Dartmouth community. She also said that the committee will gather information
on the best practices followed by other educational institutions and other
nonprofit organizations. Bucklin noted, "No decisions have been made as of yet,
and any recommendations to the Board will be based on the committee's sense of
what is in the best interest of the College and its current and future
students."
The Dartmouth Board of Trustees has ultimate responsibility for the
financial, administrative, and academic affairs of the College, including
long-range strategic planning, approving operating and capital budgets,
managing the endowment, overseeing the educational program, leading
fund-raising efforts, setting tuition and fees, and approving major policy
changes. The Board currently consists of 18 members, including eight alumni
Trustees nominated by alumni vote and elected by the Board, eight charter
Trustees selected by the Board, the Governor of New Hampshire (ex
officio) and the president of the College.
By ROLAND ADAMS
The Governance Committee is soliciting input for its evaluation, from
alumni, students, faculty, staff, parents, and others. To
comment, visit the Web site.
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