The MIT Corporation — the Institute’s board of trustees — elected 10 term members, who will each serve for five years, as well as two life members, during its quarterly meeting held today. Corporation Chair Robert B. Millard ’73 announced the election results; all positions are effective July 1.
The 10 term members are: Noubar Afeyan PhD ’87; Vanu G. Bose ’88, SM ’94, PhD ’99 (second term); Eran Broshy ’79; John D. Chisholm ’75, SM ’75; Victor J. Menezes SM ’72 (second term); Vrajesh Y. Modi ’11, SM ’15, MBA ’15; Martin Y. Tang SM ’72 (third term); Carmen M. Thain ’78 (second term); Kenneth Wang ’71 (third term); and Songyee Yoon PhD ’00.
The two life members are: Theresa M. Stone SM ’76 and Megan J. Smith ’86, SM ’88.
The Corporation also announced Nicolas E. Chammas SM ’87 as the 2016-2017 president of the Association of Alumni and Alumnae of MIT, effective July 1. As such, he becomes ex officio member of the Corporation and of the Corporation Joint Advisory Committee on Institute-Wide Affairs. He succeeds Chisholm, who will return to the Corporation for a five-year term.
As of July 1, the Corporation will consist of 76 distinguished leaders in education, science, engineering, and industry; of those, 25 are life members and eight are ex officio. An additional 34 individuals are life members emeritus.
Life members serve without a specific term until they turn 75 years old, while term members serve for five years. Both types of members have voting rights in the Corporation. Alumni nominees and representatives of recent graduating classes also serve five-year terms. At age 75, life members become life members emeritus; while they no longer have a vote, they continue to play an active role in Institute affairs.
This year’s elected term members are:
Noubar Afeyan
Founder and CEO of Flagship Ventures
Afeyan earned his PhD in biochemical engineering from MIT, and has authored numerous scientific publications and patents. He is founder and CEO of Flagship Ventures, a leading early-stage, life-science venture firm managing funds exceeding $1.4 billion. In his 30-year career, Noubar has co-founded more than 38 life-science and technology startups, and is currently director or chair of several private and public company boards. Additionally, he co-founded the National Competitiveness Foundation of Armenia, the UWC Dilijan International School, the Noubar and Anna Afeyan Foundation, and the Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity. He also served as chair of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Chemicals and Biotechnology and its Emerging Technologies Council. Since 2000, Afeyan has been a senior lecturer at the MIT Sloan School of Management.
Vanu G. Bose
Founder and CEO of Vanu, Inc.
Vanu G. Bose earned his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering in 1984, a bachelor’s degree in mathematics 1984, and a master’s and PhD in electrical engineering and computer science in 1994 and 1999, respectively, all from MIT. Bose is CEO and founder of Vanu, Inc., which pioneered the commercialization of software-defined radio and has received numerous industry awards. Bose has been named a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer and a ComputerWorld Honors Program Laureate. Bose was a technical expert for the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) report, “Realizing the Full Potential of Government-Held Spectrum to Spur Economic Growth.” He is founder and chair of the National Spectrum Consortium, and currently serves as a member of the Army Science Board.
Eran Broshy
Operating Executive of Tailwind Capital
Broshy earned his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from MIT in 1979, a master’s in civil engineering from Stanford University, and MBA from Harvard University. After early years as a civil engineer and project manager, he spent 30 years building leading, high-growth public and private healthcare businesses as CEO, board chair and director, strategist, and an investor. For the last six years, Broshy has partnered with private equity firms to invest broadly in healthcare. Previously, he served for over a decade as CEO and chair of inVentiv Health, where he turned the company into a leading global firm in the biopharmaceutical industry. From 1984 to 1998, Broshy worked for the The Boston Consulting Group, including six years as managing partner responsible for the firm’s healthcare practice across the Americas.
John D. Chisholm
CEO of John Chisholm Ventures
Chisholm earned a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in electrical engineering and computer science from MIT in 1975, and, later, an MBA from the Harvard Business School. Today he heads up John Chisholm Ventures, an entrepreneurship advisory and investment firm, and is chair of Pyze, a mobile intelligence firm. Previously, he was founder, CEO, and chair of Decisive Technology, publisher of the first software for online surveys, and CustomerSat, a leading provider of enterprise feedback management systems. He is a member of the Global Partners Council of the Institute for New Economic Thinking and advises entrepreneurs through the MIT Venture Mentoring Service, the Thiel Foundation 20under20 Fellowship, and the Plug and Play Tech Center. From 2004 to 2008, he served on the visiting committee for Mathematics.
Victor J. Menezes
Retired Senior Vice Chairman of Citigroup Inc.
Menezes earned a degree in electrical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in 1970, and a master’s in management from the MIT Sloan School of Management in 1972. Currently, he is a senior operating advisor with New Silk Route, an international private-equity firm. He was senior vice chair of Citigroup Inc., retiring in 2005 after 32 years. Previously, he was chair and CEO of Citibank, head of Citigroup’s emerging markets business, and head of Citibank’s businesses in India, Hong Kong, China, and Europe. In 1995, he was named CFO of Citicorp and Citibank. He served as a Corporation member from 2008 to 2013, serving on the Risk and Audit Committee and the Media Lab/Media Arts and Sciences and MIT Sloan School of Management visiting committees.
Vrajesh Y. Modi
Consultant, Boston Consulting Group
Modi earned bachelor’s degrees in mechanical engineering and in management science from MIT in 2011, and an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management and a master’s in mechanical engineering from MIT in 2015. He is currently a consultant at The Boston Consulting Group, where he works on strategy, pricing, and operations projects. While at MIT, Modi served as president of the Undergraduate Association, and served on the Committee on Graduate Programs, the Corporation Joint-Advisory Committee on Institute-wide Affairs, the Task Force on Student Engagement, and the Housing Strategy Group. He was also a coach for the Community Catalyst Leadership Program, a mentor for the Gordon Engineering Leadership Program, and involved with the Educational Council. For his work as an undergraduate, Modi was awarded the Karl Taylor Compton Prize.
Martin Y. Tang
Director of MTDD, Ltd.
Tang earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering in 1970 from Cornell University, and a master’s in management from MIT’s Sloan School of Management in 1972. Currently, Tang is a private investor. For 16 years, he was with Spencer Stuart, a leading management consulting firm specializing in executive search and board director appointments. Prior to joining Spencer Stuart, Tang ran Norman Broadbent HK Ltd. in Hong Kong. From 1986 to 1988, he was an executive director of Techno-Ventures Ltd., a venture capital firm. Early in his career, he was with Bank of America in San Francisco and Taiwan, before serving as executive director of the South Sea Textile Manufacturing Co. Ltd. in Hong Kong and Indonesia. He has served on numerous MIT visiting committees, including Athletics, Humanities, and Social Sciences.
Carmen M. Thain
Private investor
Thain earned a bachelor’s degree in architecture from MIT in 1978. She began her career as an assistant buyer at Bloomingdale’s, and was quickly promoted to buyer. She became the executive vice president for merchandising at The Pottery Barn, and continued in an executive position following the acquisition of The Pottery Barn by The Gap, Inc. Thain later became an independent consultant and is currently a private investor. For six years, she served as chair of the Board of Rye Country Day School in New York. She is active in promoting women’s health for Sloane Hospital for Women, part of the New York-Presbyterian Hospital. She currently serves on the MIT visiting committees for Architecture, Dean for Undergraduate Education, and Mathematics.
Kenneth Wang
President of U.S. Summit Company
Wang earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from MIT in 1971, and an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1976. Today, Wang is president of U.S. Summit Company, based in New York, which markets and distributes ethical pharmaceuticals, specialty chemicals, and consumer products in Southeast Asia. Previously, he worked for Fairfield-Maxwell Ltd., Bank of America in New York City, in shipping and ship financing, and the Oceanic Petroleum Corporation. Wang also owns and operates golf-related properties in and around New York. He also serves on the MIT visiting committees for Architecture, Dean for Student Life, and Humanities. MIT awards include Life Sustaining Fellow (1979), Henry B. Kane ’24 Award (1993), Harold E. Lobdell ’17 Award (2006), and the Bronze Beaver (2010).
Songyee Yoon
CEO of NCSOFT West
Yoon earned a PhD in computational neuroscience from MIT in 2000. Before MIT, she earned a bachelor’s degree in electronics and electrical engineering from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology. Since 2008, Yoon has served as the Global Chief Strategy Officer of NCSOFT. Previously, she served as head of the Communication Intelligence Division at SK Telecom Co. Ltd., leading platform and artificial intelligence strategy. She has taught media and entertainment industry strategy at Seoul universities, and writes for major newspapers, covering technology and humanity. Additionally, she has worked as a consultant at McKinsey and Co., as part of corporate finance and strategy practice, and is running a nonprofit organization, Common Planet, which helps endangered species. She serves on the MIT visiting committee for Brain and Cognitive Sciences.
Theresa M. Stone
Retired MIT Executive Vice President and Treasurer
Stone earned her master’s degree in management from the MIT Sloan School of Management in 1976. Before that, she earned a bachelor’s degree in French literature from Wellesley College. From 2007 to 2011, Stone served as MIT’s executive vice president and treasurer. She has been a member of MIT’s Corporation since 1996. Stone’s career in financial services includes management roles as president of Chubb Life Insurance Company and CFO of Jefferson-Pilot Corporation. For 14 years, she was an investment banker at Morgan Stanley. She has served on numerous corporate and foundation boards, including American International Group, Duke Energy Corporation, and the Harold Alfond Foundation. She also served as board member and treasurer of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and vice chair of the board for the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.
Megan J. Smith
U.S. Chief Technology Officer
Smith earned a bachelor’s degree in 1986 and master’s in 1988, both in mechanical engineering, from MIT. Smith currently serves as the U.S. chief technology officer in the Office of Science and Technology Policy. Previously, she spent nine years as vice president of GoogleX and as Google’s vice president of New Business Development and Strategy. From 1996 to 2003, Smith was the CEO of PlanetOut. From 1990 to 1996, she worked at General Magic, Inc., on handheld communications products and partnerships. She also worked on multimedia products at Apple Computer Japan in Tokyo from 1988 to 1990. From 1988 to 1993, Smith served on the Corporation, and returned to the Corporation in 2006, before going on leave to work for the Obama Administration.
