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Vanderbilt University Vice Chancellor Elected Simmons College Board Chair

Simmons alumna Lauren Brisky chosen at May Simmons board meeting

BOSTON (July 1, 2008) — The Simmons College Board of Trustees has elected Lauren J. Brisky, vice chancellor for administration and chief financial officer of Vanderbilt University, as its new chair.

Brisky, a 1973 Simmons graduate and a Simmons Board of Trustees member for seven years, was unanimously elected by the board at its May meeting for a three-year term. Simmons College is a nationally recognized, private, small university in Boston with an undergraduate college for women, and graduate programs for women and men in health sciences, social work, library and information sciences, management, communications, education and liberal arts.

At Vanderbilt, Brisky is responsible for the institution's financial management and administrative infrastructure, including finance, facilities, construction, human resources, information systems and business operations.  Vanderbilt University is a nationally ranked private, independent research university and medical center in Nashville, TN, with an operating budget of $3 billion and net assets of $5 billion.

Brisky said that she was honored to be selected as chair of her alma mater, noting that her Simmons education and her professors' guidance "changed my life in many positive ways, and I am honored to try and do the same for others at this stage in Simmons's history."

She said Simmons, with its special emphasis on combining liberal arts with career preparation, "is more relevant today that ever before.  Simmons not only offers an outstanding education, it also has a smart, realistic link to the world our students will face when they graduate.  Along with my fellow board members, I look forward to working with the college community in providing whatever support and guidance we can to help Simmons continue to grow and prosper."

Brisky also has held senior administration positions at Cornell University, the University of Pennsylvania, and North Carolina State University.  She received her B.A. in history and government with distinction from Simmons College, and an MBA from Cornell University, followed by training in the executive development program at Harvard University's Institute for Educational Management.

During Brisky's first term on the Simmons College Board of Trustees (2000-2005), she served as chair of the facilities and technology committee and chair of the audit committee.  During her second term, which began in 2006, she has served as chair of the finance committee.