Discovery Place Names New Board Members

Science & technology Museum appoints six new Members to Board of Trustees

July 30, 2010

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Discovery Place recently appointed six new members to the Museum’s Board of Trustees. They include Patricia Crawford of Wells Fargo, A. Victor Fields of The Charlotte Observer, Michael Jones of Husqvarna, Julio Ramirez, Ph.D., of Davidson College, Paul Rutledge of Transamerica Reinsurance and Andrea Smith of Bank of America.

Discovery Place Board Members for 2010 – 2011:

Patricia Crawford is senior vice president and head of enterprise diversity and inclusion for Wells Fargo, a position she has held since December 2007. In this role she leads the company’s diversity, affirmative action and equal employment opportunity initiatives and is responsible for providing leadership and strategy to help the company develop and maintain a diverse and inclusive culture. Pat began her career with the National Capital Planning Commission in 1973, going on to work for Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Services from 1983-1993. She joined Wells Fargo in 1994 and has held various leadership roles, most recently as senior vice president, enterprise marketing, and diverse growth segments, where she helped develop business and marketing programs for African American markets.

Pat has served on many professional and community boards, panels, committees and organizations. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California Los Angeles and a Master of Urban and Regional Planning degree from the University of Southern California.

A. Victor Fields transferred to Charlotte in May of 1998 as The Charlotte Observer’s chief financial officer. In 2008 Victor’s role expanded to include the Raleigh News & Observer and Rock Hill Herald newspapers. Victor joined Miami Herald in December 1996, and prior to that worked for Arthur Anderson in Miami, Florida.

Victor graduated from Florida A&M in 1985 with a Bachelors degree in Accounting and is a certified public accountant in Florida. He is a member of the American Institute of CPAs and International Newspaper Financial Executives. Victor has served on the board of the Children’s Theater of Charlotte, UNC Charlotte Athletic Foundation, Arts & Science Council Investment Committee and the Afro-American Community Foundation.

Victor and his wife Nina Anders Fields are South Florida natives. They have three children.

Michael Jones was appointed president for Husqvarna’s North American and Latin American operations in October 2009. He began his career in New Haven, Connecticut in the telecommunications and computer industry and currently has more than twenty years’ management experience in business, product management, operations and international business. Michael joined GE Appliances in 1994 where he was chief commercial officer for the lighting and industrial control business and led GE’s Cooking Business. As president of Husqvarna, Michael leads the North American and Latin American retail and professional products divisions.

Michael has a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration. He and his wife Shanon Thomas Jones have two sons.

Julio Ramirez, Ph.D., previously served on the Board of Trustees from 2003-2009. He did his postdoctoral work in neuroscience at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology from 1985 to 1986 after receiving his Ph.D. from Clark University in 1983 and taught at the College of St. Benedict/St. John’s University from 1981 to 1985. Presently, he is the Stuart R. Dickson professor of psychology at Davidson College, where he has taught since 1986.

Dr. Ramirez’s research interests include the recovery of function after central nervous system injury, with an emphasis on determining the functional significance of hippocampal neuroplasticity. Dr. Ramirez also teaches undergraduate courses in neuroscience and general psychology. He has involved well over a hundred undergraduate students in his research program since 1981. Numerous students have coauthored presentations and papers with him in national and international conferences and journals. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Association for Psychological Science and the Council on Undergraduate Research. He is an editor for the journal Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience and he was the founding senior editor of The Journal of Undergraduate Neuroscience Education.

Paul Rutledge has served as president of Transamerica Reinsurance, a division of Transamerica Life Insurance Company, since joining the organization in 1998. He also serves on the board of directors for Transamerica International Re (Bermuda) Ltd. and Transamerica International Reinsurance Ireland Ltd. Paul has more than 30 years experience in the insurance industry. Before joining Transamerica Reinsurance, he served as president and CEO of Life of Virginia, a consumer business of GE Capital Services, and also held roles at several Torchmark companies including Liberty National, Torchmark Holdings and United Investors Life.

A native of St. Louis, Missouri, Paul holds a Bachelors of Arts degree in Mathematics from Duke University. He is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries and a Member of the American Academy of Actuaries. He and his wife Kathy live in Charlotte and have two daughters.

Andrea Smith is a global human resources executive for Bank of America and a member of the company’s executive management team, where she leads a team of human resources professionals responsible for recruiting, learning, leadership development, compensation, benefits, diversity and inclusion, and associate relations for nearly 300,000 associates in more than 40 countries. She also is responsible for the company’s corporate aviation and executive protection functions. Smith joined Bank of America in 1988 and has held a range of leadership positions in global human resources.

Smith actively promotes the company’s commitment to diversity and inclusion internally and externally. She served as a member of the company’s Global Diversity and Inclusion Council for four years and currently serves as co-chair of the Bank of America Black Professionals Group. She received her Bachelor’s of Art degree in Economics from Southern Methodist University.

Returning board members include Jeanne Brayboy, Rich Campbell of Cameron Carmichael, Christopher Cecil of GenSpring, Bruce Clayton, Nelson Cosgrove of Joe Gibbs Racing, Chris Cotton of Deloitte & Touche, Hilary Davidson of Duke Energy, Suzanne Freeman of Carolinas Medical Center, Leigh Goodwyn of Good Marketing Concepts, Inc., Bob Hambright of Balfour Beatty Construction, Kelly Katterhagen of BlackArch Partners, Patsy Kinsey of Charlotte City Council and Pease Associates, Lorrell Meloy, president of The Guild of Discovery Place & Charlotte Nature Museum, Cindy Moss, Ph.D., of Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools, Chris Perri of Beacon Partners, Beth Perry M.D. of Signature Healthcare, Staci Rosche of McGuire Woods, Mike Seelig of PricewaterhouseCoopersLLP, Kathy Shonts, past president of The Guild of Discovery Place & Charlotte Nature Museum, Heather Tamol of Wray Ward, Stephanie Taylor, Lloyd Wimberley of Wingate University and Amy Vance of Presbyterian Hospital.

Discovery Place Board of Trustee officers include chairman Chris Cecil, vice chairman Chris Perri and treasurer Kelly Katterhagen. Cecil, president of GenSpring, will serve his term as chairman from June 2010-May 2013. He previously served as vice chairman from June 2007-May 2010. Perri, chief operating officer for Beacon Partners, is slated to serve as vice chairman from June 2010-May 2013. Katterhagen, partner with BlackArch Partners, is also serving her term as treasurer from June 2010-May 2013. She previously served as treasurer from June 2007-May 2010.

In June 2010, Discovery Place finished an 18-month, $31.6 million renovation, resulting in a completely transformed and re-imagined Museum with all-new interactive exhibits. Discovery Place KIDS, a community-based children’s museum for children from birth through age 7, will open in Huntersville in fall 2010.

Discovery Place exists to ignite wonder as a preeminent science education center providing extraordinary experiences that engage people in the active exploration of science and nature. One of the top hands-on science museums in the nation, Discovery Place provides ever-changing, entertaining facilities that foster experiences in areas that range from life science to space exploration. More than a half-million people from all over the United States visit Discovery Place, its IMAX® Dome Theatre and Charlotte Nature Museum each year. Discovery Place is supported, in part, with a Basic Operating Grant from the Arts & Science Council.

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