ASU Alumni Association announces new board of directors and National Alumni Council members

The Arizona State University Alumni Association, which has been named the No. 1 largest Phoenix-area networking association for the eighth consecutive year by the Phoenix Business Journal, recently announced its 2021–22 Board of Directors and National Alumni Council. Terms for all members of both groups began July 1.

“Members of the board and council bring their diverse professional expertise and passion for their alma mater as they provide guidance and serve as ambassadors for the Alumni Association and the university,” said Christine Wilkinson, president and CEO of the organization. “I look forward to working with this talented group of business and community leaders as we focus on advancing the university, enhancing the alumni experience, honoring traditions and strengthening alumni leadership.”

Board/Council Officers

The following persons were named to serve as officers of the board of directors and the National Alumni Council.

Chair: Kristine Kassel, ’91 BS

A successful business owner, Kassel joined the ASU Alumni Association National Alumni Council in 2013 and the board of directors in 2016. Kassel’s business, Benefits by Design, an Arizona-based insurance agency, has focused on group employee benefits for over two decades. For her business and community service she has received several awards, including Tempe Business Woman of the Year, NAWBO Business Owner of the Year and recognition as an honoree of the Sun Devil 100 two years in a row. She has served as board chair of the Tempe Chamber of Commerce, Gabriel’s Angels, the Phoenix chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners, Arizona Association of Health Underwriter’s and the Arizona Small Business Association.

“ASU continues to be innovative in academics, research, philanthropy and more,” Kassel said. “The Alumni Association works hard to create programs and opportunities to engage alumni and connect them back to their alma mater and with fellow alums. My goal is to bring further awareness to the amazing programs, projects and accomplishments of the university and the association to our Sun Devil alumni around the globe.”

Chair-elect: Gregg Brewster, ’83 BA

Brewster brings a long and successful history in logistics and supply chain management and is currently regional vice president of sales and commercial services for Owens & Minor, a global health care company providing expertise in health care, supply chain management, logistics and transportation. Brewster joined the association’s board of directors in August 2016 and has actively supported the mission while focusing on the board’s state government engagements as the chair of the legislative committee. He and his wife, Tracy, have two daughters who are also Sun Devil alums, following a Brewster family tradition of ASU graduations dating back to 1956.

Treasurer: Joya Kizer, ’04 BS

Kizer has served for 20 years as president and chief executive officer of CASA Unlimited Enterprises, a family owned ACDBE-certified airport concessionaire business that owns, operates and/or serves as joint venture partnerships in four metropolitan airports. She is involved in all aspects of the airport operations, management, business development and decision-making, and she continues to build growth opportunities for the business. Her recognitions include being a Sun Devil 100 honoree for the past three years, a recipient of the Univision Radio Phoenix, and Valle del Sol “40 Hispanic Leaders Under 40” for her excellence in business leadership, and she is a member of the National Association of Professional Women.

Past-chair: Chris Hill, ’86 BS

Hill has served in numerous roles since joining the board in 2015, including being a part of the ASU Alumni Veterans Chapter and participating in the selection of scholarship award recipients and ASU Leadership Institute participants. He is a distinguished military graduate from ASU’s nationally ranked ROTC program and served in the Army as a medical service corps officer for 20 years. Hill subsequently served as CEO for several large health care organizations and is currently the senior managing director of Treadstone Management.

ASU Alumni Association Board of Directors

The following alums were elected to their first three-year term on the association’s board of directors, effective July 1:

Michael Angulo, ’06 BS

Angulo, a supply chain management professional at Salt River Project with more than 15 years of experience, joined the National Alumni Council in July 2019. In addition to his valued service to the council, Angulo’s support of the university and alumni association includes past leadership roles with the ASU Hispanic Business Alumni chapter as scholarship chair and events committee participant, as well as a sponsorship and major events adviser to the group. Angulo serves on the board of the East Valley Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Associated Minority Contractors of Arizona, plus committee and operations support for St. Mary’s Food Bank and the Pacific Southwest Minority Supplier Development Council.

Paul Kent, ’88 BS

Kent is the proprietor of Flagstaff Extreme and is dedicated to the ongoing growth, well-being and advancement of Arizona’s communities. He serves on the University Park Neighborhood Association, the Northern Arizona University Curriculum Advisory Board for Parks and Recreation, the city of Tempe Mayor’s Commission on Disability Concerns, All Saints Catholic Newman Center’s Finance Council and the Arc of Tempe Board of Directors. In past years, Kent has volunteered as a Tillman Scholar mentor at ASU and at Maggie’s Place, a non-profit organization providing homes for homeless pregnant women.

Clarence McAllister, ’91 BS, ’97 MS

McAllister is a multicultural, multilingual business leader with more than 30 years of experience in technology and construction. Having started several companies, he is the CEO and founder of Fortis Engineers, a world-class electrical and mechanical engineering firm based in Phoenix. He was appointed by Gov. Doug Ducey to the Arizona Board of Technical Registration and serves on the Arizona Supreme Court Alternative Business Structure Board. McAllister is an active member of Greater Phoenix Leadership, the Young President Organization, and the honorary board of advisors for addiction and PTSD treatment center Warriors Heart. Additionally, he chairs the board of both the small business microlender DreamSpring and Western Rare Earth. His son is a May 2020 graduate of the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering.

Jen Scrivner, ’04 MBA

As the COO of Goodmans Interior Structures, one of the first certified B Corporations in Arizona, Scrivner is passionate about education and believes it’s the key to changing an individual’s circumstances for the better. Scrivner is grateful for the experience of her MBA program and sought out opportunities to further the university’s charter and was accepted into the ASU Leadership Institute in 2019. Her roles in the community include dedicating time and energy to the Northwest Maricopa Regional Council of First Things First, Valley of the Sun United Way, Conscious Capitalism Senior Leader Network, T-Gen ambassadorship, Joyride Society and KNOW Women Phoenix. 

The four new board members join the following board members: Ray Artigue, ’76 BA; Latasha Causey, ’02 BIS; Rick Dircks, ’82 BS; Lisa Fernandez, ’09 BS; Tim Gertz, ’01 BS, ’02 MAIS; Luis Heredia, ’98 BS; Mark Kerrigan, ’74 BS; Jim Lodge, ’87 MBA; Kirk McClure, ’01 BSD, ’10 MBA; Mike McGuirk, ’82 BS; Stephanie Mitrovic, ’09 MArch; and Michael Tully, ’87 BS, ’91 MBA.

ASUAA National Alumni Council

Five ASU alums were named to their first three-year terms on the Alumni Association’s National Alumni Council:

• Rick Bowers, ’92 BS, president, TTI Success Insights.
• Barbara Dickerson, ’75 MA, administrator, Canyon City Foundation.
• Giovanna Grijalva, ’00 MEd, ’09 EdD, client relations director, ADM Group.
• Rayme Lofgren, ’06 BIS, senior director of marketing, Arizona Diamondbacks.
• Bob Mulhern, ’81 BA, ’83 MBA, senior managing director, Greater Phoenix, Colliers International.

These new members join the following on the National Alumni Council: Suzanne Durkin-Bighorn, ’04 BS, ’18 MNLM; Andi Fourlis, ’92 BAE, ’11 EdD; Samantha Hagan, ’93 BS; Eden Higgins, ’87 BA; Tim Huish, ’98 BS; Valerie Jedlicki, ’09 BS; Chad Kolodisner, ’91 BS; Rick Nakazawa, ’85 BS; Ira Rotenberg, ’95 BS, ’00 MBA; Shaney Salomon, ’14 BIS; Ty Triplett, ’76 BS; Andrew Vandertoorn, ’02 BS; and Jennifer Ward, ’03 BS, ’03 BS.