Milwaukee Repertory Theater is proud to announce five newly elected Board Trustees that will serve a three-year term starting July 1, 2019. They include: Andres Gonzalez, Vice President, Chief Diversity Officer Froedert & Medical College of Wisconsin; Bill Guc, Vice President & Controller for WEC Energy Group; Thomas R. Irgens, Executive Vice President Irgens; James N. Phillips, shareholder in Godfrey & Kahn, S.C; and Christopher Rowland, Global Diversity Officer at ManpowerGroup.
"Milwaukee Rep has made it its mission to ignite positive change culturally, socially and economically in our community," said Greg Oberland, Board President. 'I am thrilled to have the skills sets and community connections of these five new trustees to help us move this work forward in a meaningful way."
Additionally, five trustees were elected to new positions on Milwaukee Rep's Executive Committee, including Catherine Robinson (Community Volunteer) as President-Elect, VP of Trustees, James N. Philips (Godfrey & Kahn, S.C) as Treasurer, Bladen Burns (SVP and Partner, Fiduciary Management) as Secretary as well as Rob Manegold (Community Volunteer) and Warren Buliox (MWH Law Group Parnter) as At Large appointments.
Newly Elected Milwaukee Repertory Board Trustee Biographies:
Andres Gonzalez, Vice President, Chief Diversity Officer Froedert & Medical College of Wisconsin
Andres Gonzalez has worked in the non-profit sector for over 20 years. He has been instrumental in creating culturally and linguistically competent programs. He serves as the Vice President, Chief Diversity Officer at Froedtert & Medical College of Wisconsin located in Milwaukee, WI. He provides direction to the Office of Diversity & Inclusion where he leads strategic initiatives that include: Community Engagement, Diversity Action Teams (DATs), Diversity & Cultural Competence Education, Emerging Markets Initiative, Health Equity, Inclusion Advocates, Language Services, Leadership Development, Supplier Diversity and Talent Acquisition. Gonzalez holds a Bachelor's Degree in Biology from Cleveland State University and a Master's Degree in Education with a concentration on Community Agency Counseling from Cleveland State University. He also completed the certification program at Cornell University's Industrial and Labor Relations Department and earned a Cornell Certified Diversity Practitioner/Advanced Practitioner (CCDP/AP) certification. Additionally, he is part of the national boards of the following organizations: American Heart/Stroke Association's Diversity Leadership Committee and Health Equity Taskforce, American Leadership Council for Diversity in Healthcare (ALCDH), The Institute for Diversity and Health Equity, and a member of the National Association for Latino Healthcare Executives (NALHE). Gonzalez also serves on local boards including: Employ Milwaukee-the Milwaukee Area Workforce Investment Board (MAWIB), Junior Achievement, La Causa, Inc., Nativity Jesuit Academy and Waukesha County Land Conservancy.
Bill Guc, Vice President & Controller for WEC Energy Group
Bill Guc oversees WEC Energy Group's accounting and financial reporting and analysis functions for all eight of its regulated utilities and other non-utility business operations. He joined the WEC family of companies when his former employer Integrys was acquired in 2015. Prior to this role, Guc was Vice President and Treasurer for Integrys Energy group. He joined Integrys in early 2005 where he helped build the company's finance, credit and accounting organization for the non-regulated wholesale and retail of natural gas and electric businesses. He also worked extensively on the effort to divest and restructure these into a smaller, more focused, customer-centric business. Prior to joining Integrys, he managed the accounting function for DTE Energy Trading, where he spent 10 years in various financial roles. Guc started his professional career with Arthur Andersen in Detroit, MI. He received a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Wayne State University (Detroit, MI) in 1991 and a Masters of Business Information Technology from Walsh College (Troy, MI) in 2002. He completed the University of Chicago Advanced Management Program in 2013 and is a Certified Public Accountant. Guc is married to his wife Cheryl with three children and enjoys triathlons, hunting and generally all outdoor activities.
Thomas R. Irgens, Executive Vice President Irgens
Thomas R. Irgens oversees the asset management team at Irgens, a commercial real estate development firm. Additionally, he directs activities to drive market value for the company's diverse portfolio of commercial, healthcare, mixed-use, retail and industrial real estate holdings nationwide. He is responsible for leading asset-specific business planning including marketing, leasing and property management activities combined to enhance each asset's financial performance.
Irgens is an active member of the Commercial Association of Realtors Wisconsin and Milwaukee Downtown Business Improvement District #21 board member. He also is on Irgens' Board of Directors and Investment Committee.
James N. Phillips, Godfrey & Kahn, S.C
Jim Phillips is a shareholder in the Tax and International Law Practice Groups in the Godfrey & Kahn Milwaukee office. His practice is concentrated in the areas of domestic and international tax structuring, planning and controversy matters, corporate and business law, acquisitions and venture capital. Additionally he provides counseling to corporations, limited liability companies, partnerships and individuals. Jim received his B.A. and J.D. from the University of Iowa Law School in 1976 and 1979, respectively and served as an editor for The Journal of Corporation Law.
Christopher Rowland, Global Diversity Officer - ManpowerGroup
Christopher Rowland was appointed ManpowerGroup's Global Diversity Officer in June 2016, after previously serving as Managing Director for ManpowerGroup Solutions. He oversees the advancement of ManpowerGroup's long-term D&I strategy and execution to ensure the company continues to be a leader internally and externally. Furthermore, he is responsible for understanding the company's diversity on a regional and country level to determine how to elevate inclusiveness and implement diversity best practices. Continuously, Rowland collaborates with the senior leadership team to implement culture and talent strategies that leverage diversity and inclusion across the company's 80 countries and territories and throughout the ManpowerGroup family of brands. Rowland holds a bachelor's degree with a major in economics from Colgate University and currently resides in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
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