Skip to main content

Six new directors nominated to the Alumni Board

The Alumni Association Board of Directors has nominated six new directors and is recommending that three others be reappointed to second terms. All would serve for three years beginning in 2011.
 
Nominees include two educational professionals, an attorney, a marketing manager, a vice president at a Massachusetts company and a graduate student from the University of Chicago.

The candidates are presented as a single slate according to the bylaws of the Association. You can indicate your support for the slate by calling 1-800-888-7549 or emailing the Office of Alumni Relations no later than June 25. Brief bios of the nominees are below. View full bios.

New nominees are:
 
Liana Mercedes Guzmán Weis '05 (New York)
Guzmán, a psychology major, is marketing manager at Axiom, a new-model law firm. In 2007, she co-founded The Pink Agenda, a non-profit whose mission is to engage young people in the fight against breast cancer. She previously served as a reunion committee member and is currently an ad hoc member of the programming subcommittee of the Alumni Board.
 
Eric J. Kaplan '85 (Philadelphia)
Kaplan is the senior director for development and alumni relations for international initiatives at the University of Pennsylvania. At Connecticut College he has held many volunteer roles, including class agent chair, class president and admissions representative. He also mentors a Point Scholar who is a first-year student at the Wharton School. Kaplan has a master’s in education from Harvard and a doctorate in education from the University of Pennsylvania. 
 
Usman Khosa '04 (Chicago)
Khosa graduated with a double major in economics and international relations. He is currently enrolled as a graduate student at the University of Chicago. Khosa has been a very active volunteer since graduation. He assists the Office of Alumni Relations with regional events and currently serves as a career advisor.  
 
Frank Suher '89 (Longmeadow, Mass.)
A government and psychology major, Suher is vice president of E-S Sports in Holyoke, Mass. In college, Suher was active in many student organizations and admissions, and was a member of the varsity soccer team. As an alumnus, he has been an admissions rep and class agent chair. He also has served on his reunion planning committee. is married to Hilary Schacher Suher ’90.
 
Liza Talusan '97 (Brockton, Mass.)
A psychology major, Talusan received her master’s from New York University and is director of intercultural affairs at Stonehill College. As a student she was a member of the Williams Street Mix and as a housefellow. She is an ad hoc member of the Connecticut College Alumni of Color committee of the Alumni Board and is an admissions rep. Talusan has returned to campus many times to speak. She has been the College’s Asian Awareness Month keynote speaker and was the 2008 Convocation speaker. She is married to Jorge Vega ’97.
 
Dena Wolf Yeskoo '75 (Summit, N.J.)
Yeskoo, a psychology major, graduated from Yale Law School in 1978 and has a master of laws degree in taxation from the New York University School of Law. She is an attorney at Weil, Gotshal and Manges LLP in New York. A consummate volunteer, Yeskoo is a class agent chair and a member of her class reunion planning committee. She has also served as class agent, an admissions rep and a career advisor.

Nominees for a second term are:
 
Stephen “Knute” Gregg ’94
Gregg, a political science and Hispanic studies major, has a law degree from Lewis and Clark College. He has volunteered as a class agent, class agent chair, admissions rep and reunion committee member. Gregg is on the programming committee on the Alumni Board and has hosted a number of alumni events. As an attorney in the Palo Alto office of Morrison & Foerster LLP, his practice focuses on legal and business issues affecting growth companies and investors both in the technology and non-technology sectors. He lives in San Francisco with his wife Jillian and daughter.
 
Usman Sheikh ’04 
Sheikh grew up in Pakistan and after graduation decided to stay in the United States. He majored in economics and international relations. As a student, Sheikh was involved with SGA, J-Board, CISLA and various committees. As a board member, he serves on the programming committee. Sheikh currently lives in New York and works for UBS in Stamford, Conn.
 
Thomas Usdin ’79
A history major, Usdin has a law degree from Tulane. As a member of the board, he has focused on the international committee, working to help alumni overseas feel more connected to the College. Usdin is active on several community boards. He currently practices mediation at MAPS in New Orleans, the largest mediation firm in the Southeast. He is the co-manager of the firm. Usdin is also an adjunct faculty member at Tulane Law School and has taught in London, Berlin and Vienna. Usdin lives in New Orleans with his wife Sarah and his son and daughter.
  
The following members of the Alumni Board will be stepping down at the end of the term:  Andrew Bogle ’94, Carol Blake Boyd ’72, Christy Burke ’93, William “Will” Kane ’84 and Frederick “Rick Stratton ’96.



April 13, 2011