The Vanderbilt Board of Trust elected four new members during its spring meeting last week, including Young Alumni Trustee Ayo Ositelu, Lee M. Bass, Bruce R. Evans and William W. Featheringill.
Bass, a parent of a Vanderbilt student, received his bachelor's degree from Yale University and his master's of business administration from The Wharton School at University of Pennsylvania. A native of Fort Worth, Texas, he is head of Bass Enterprises Production Company and has been active in Vanderbilt's Parents Leadership Committee, the College Cabinet and the Canby Robinson Society. Bass' other civic commitments have included the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission, the International Rhino Foundation, the Peregrine Fund and Fort Worth's Modern Art Museum and Zoological Association.
Evans, of Boston, Mass., earned his bachelor's of engineering from Vanderbilt in 1981. Currently, he is managing partner of Summit Partners in Boston. He and his wife, Bridgett, have established the Evans Honor Scholarship and co-hosted a Shape the Future campaign event for Boston alumni. Evans has been an active community member of the Vanderbilt Board of Trust Investment Committee. He participated in the 2006 Leadership Conference and served as fundraising chair for the Class of 1981's 25th reunion. Evans is a member of the Engineering Alumni Council and the Lewis Society. Other civic activities include fundraising for the Winsor School, Roxbury Latin School and the Harvard Business School, of which he is a graduate.
Featheringill, of Birmirgham, Ala., is a 1964 alumnus of the School of Engineering. He is president of Private Capital Corporation and a previous Vanderbilt Board of Trust member. His Vanderbilt activities include chairing the Engineering Shape the Future Campaign Committee and providing the major funding for the building of Featheringill Hall. He has served on the Engineering Committee of Visitors. He also was fundraising chair for the Class of 1964's 40th reunion. In Birmingham he has served on the boards of the Southern Research Institute, the Birmingham Museum of Art, Cumberland and Samford universities.
Students of the Classes of 2008, 2009 and 2010 voted in March and elected Ositelu, a native of Indianapolis, Ind., to serve as the 2009 Young Alumni Trustee.
Ositelu, who just graduated with a double major in engineering and mathematics, has been active in diversity issues on campus. He served as president of the African Students Union and as a member of the Multicultural Leadership Council. Additionally, he has been vice president of the Biomedical Engineering Society, Regional Academic Excellence Chair for the National Society of Black Engineers and a participant in Alternative Spring Break. The Chancellor's Scholar and former Mr. Commodore has volunteered with the Nashville Adult Literacy Council, Kipp Academy and Vanderbilt Students Volunteering for Science.
Bass, Evans and Featheringill will each serve five-year terms, while Ositelu will serve four years.
Vanderbilt News Service contributed reporting to this article.
