KSU Foundation’s Board of Directors honored for exceptional leadership to K-State
This April, the KSU Foundation Board of Directors was honored with the 2018-2019 John W. Nason Award for Board Leadership by the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (AGB) for exceptional leadership and initiative.
KSU Foundation Board of Directors was chosen for “transcending the traditional role of an institutionally related foundation,” according to AGB’s announcement in April.
“From substantially elevating fundraising performance to delivering solutions to address the university’s greatest needs, members of the KSU Foundation’s Board of Directors are truly committed to delivering outstanding results to our university,” said KSU Foundation President and CEO Greg Willems. “We greatly appreciate their extraordinary service.”
Under the board’s leadership, the KSU Foundation was able to collaborate with university leadership to identify and procure software that matches student data with scholarship criteria to provide a robust list of students that fit scholarship qualifications — greatly assisting the institution with both enrollment and access to a wide range of students. Additionally, the board launched a new process to better utilize donor funds and created a real estate strategy to draw corporate partners to campus.
This year’s Nason Award honorees were chosen from some 35 nominations illustrating the critical work of boards from both public and private institutions, statewide systems, and institutionally related foundations. Of the six institutions chosen this year, the KSU Foundation is the only institutionally related foundation to receive the honor.
“We are fortunate to have a board of directors at the KSU Foundation that is actively engaged and committed to the success of K-State,” said Kansas State University President Richard B. Myers. “Their progressive leadership has been paramount in raising and managing funds for student scholarships, optimizing the deployment of donor funds to address the university’s most pressing needs, and managing real estate projects and strategies that attract corporate partners to campus.”
KSU Foundation Board of Directors
The KSU Foundation Board of Directors serves as the KSU Foundation’s governing board. Elected by members of the Board of Trustees, the Board of Directors meets three times a year to consider strategic and policy issues and also serve on standing committees to provide guidance and oversight to foundation staff.
Stephen Lacy
Des Moines, Iowa
Chairman, Board of Directors
B.S., Accounting, 1976; MBA, 1977
Carl Ice
Westlake, Texas
Vice Chairman, Board of Directors
B.S., Industrial Engineering, 1979
J.P. Bilbrey
Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania
B.S., Psychology, 1978
Jan Burton
Boulder, Colorado
Secretary, Board of Directors
B.S., Business Administration, 1977
Charlie Chandler
Wichita, Kansas
B.S., Business Administration, 1975
Dave Everitt
Marco Island, Florida
B.S., Industrial Engineering, 1975
Sharon Evers
St. Joseph, Missouri
B.A., Modern Languages, 1967
Damon Hininger
Brentwood, Tennessee
B.S., Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work, 1991
Charlene Lake
Dallas, Texas
B.S., Journalism and Mass Communications, 1983
Kelly Lechtenberg
Oakland, Nebraska
DVM, Veterinary Medicine, 1987, Ph.D., Animal Science, 1988
Sylvia Robinson
Kansas City, Kansas
Chairman, K-State Alumni Association Board of Directors
B.A., Elementary Education, 1971
Tim Taylor
The Woodlands, Texas
B.S., Chemical Engineering, 1975
Steven Theede
Houston, Texas
B.S., Mechanical Engineering, 1974
Mary Vanier
Manhattan, Kansas
B.S., Hotel and Restaurant Management, 1989
Ex Officio members
Richard B. Myers
B.S., Mechanical Engineering, 1965
President
Kansas State University
Amy Button Renz
B.S., Political Science, 1976; MPA, 1986
President and CEO
K-State Alumni Association
Charles Taber
Provost and Senior Vice President
Kansas State University
Greg Willems
President and CEO
Kansas State University Foundation
