Four alumni of the University of Rochester with expertise in business and finance will begin serving on the University Board of Trustees this month.
"A great university deserves a strong and committed Board of Trustees," said G. Robert Witmer Jr., chairman of the board. "We are delighted to welcome these four very accomplished and loyal alumni, and we look forward to having them join us and President Joel Seligman in setting and achieving the exciting goals worthy of our alma mater."
Charles R. Munnerlyn, co-founder and former chairman and CEO of Visx Inc., designed the first digital device for automatically determining refractive errors in the human eye. He is considered one of the founding fathers of laser vision correction and is among those who ushered in the era of eye surgeries to improve sight.
He earned his doctoral degree in optical engineering from the University in 1969, and is the 2002 recipient of the highest alumni honor given by the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Munnerlyn, of San Jose, Calif., holds more than 30 U.S. patents in the field of optics. He also is a graduate of Texas A&M University with a bachelor of science degree in physics.
Business executive Thomas R. Sloan, of Greensboro, N.C., is well-known for his entrepreneurial activities and his civic contributions. He is the former CEO and chairman of Essilor Laboratories of America and the former chairman of Southern Optical Co. Currently, Sloan is the chairman of SterlingSouth Bank & Trust Company. He earned his bachelor of science and master of science degrees in optics from the College of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering at Rochester in 1965 and in 1967, respectively. A few years later, he received an M.B.A. from Northeastern University.
Sloan was honored with a Meliora Citation for Career Achievement in 2005. His wife, Linda, is an alumna of the University.
Kathy N. Waller, vice president and chief of internal audit for Coca-Cola Company in Atlanta, earned a bachelor of arts degree in history from the College of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering in 1980 and an M.B.A. from the University of Rochester's William E. Simon Graduate School of Business Administration in 1983. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and has been active on many civic boards and also has held advisory roles at the University. In 2005, Waller was recognized with a Meliora Citation for Career Achievement.
Janice Maguire Willett, a financial writer and editor from Ridgewood, N.J., earned her M.B.A. in finance and accounting from the Simon School in 1978. Her financial background extends from corporate banking with Chase Manhattan Bank (now JPMorgan Chase) to reviewing and editing academic manuscripts on a range of topics for practitioners in economic fields. In the not-for-profit world, she has led community school associations and has served on boards and advisory groups.
A graduate of the American University in Paris with an associate in arts degree, Willett earned a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Michigan. Her husband, Joseph T. Willett, is a Simon School alumnus.