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Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Leadership and Executive CommitteeFounders Co-Chairs Executive Committee
Melinda French Gates is involved in a variety of philanthropic endeavors that support the arts, social services, and education, including her position as a trustee of Duke University, her alma mater. She serves on the Parent-Teacher Technology Committee for Sacred Heart Catholic School in Bellevue, Washington, and is a past board member at the Village Theatre in Issaquah, Washington. Gates also devotes her time to managing the grantmaking of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which was founded in 1994 to support initiatives in global health and learning. Gates earned a bachelor's degree in computer science and economics from Duke in 1986 and a master's degree from Duke's Fuqua School of Business in 1987. Upon graduation, she joined Microsoft where she played a leadership role in the development of many of the company's multimedia and Web-based products. Two years after she married Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, she retired to care for their young children and to contribute her organizational talents and leadership to the community. William (Bill) H. Gates, III Bill Gates is Chairman and Chief Software Architect of Microsoft Corporation. While at Harvard, he developed the programming language BASIC for the first microcomputer -- the MITS Altair. In 1975, Gates launched Microsoft with Paul Allen to develop software for personal computers. He is actively involved in key management and strategic decisions at Microsoft, and plays an important role in the technical development of new products. Gates has also co-authored the New York Times bestseller The Road Ahead and the recently issued Business @ the Speed of Thought. Proceeds from both books have been directed toward nonprofits serving young people.
Bill Gates, Sr. brings a distinguished career in law and many years of public service to his role as Co-Chair and CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Bill earned his bachelor's and law degrees from the University of Washington, following three years of U.S. Army service in World War II. He became a partner in the law firm of Shidler McBroom Gates & Lucas in 1964, guiding it through growth and mergers that would eventually establish Preston Gates & Ellis, one of Seattle's leading law firms. A successful and prominent attorney, Bill has served as president of both the Seattle/King County Bar Association and the Washington State Bar Association. His many other leadership positions include past chairmanship of the Washington Courts 2000 Committee and the American Bar Association Commission on Public Understanding About the Law. His awards and honors include the 1992 American Judicature Society Herbert Harley Award and being named a 1991 University of Washington Law School Distinguished Alumnus. Bill has served as trustee, officer and volunteer for more than two dozen Northwest organizations, including the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce and King County United Way. In 1995, he founded the Technology Alliance, a cooperative regional effort to expand technology-based employment in Washington. He also has been a strong advocate for education for many years, chairing the Seattle Public School Levy Campaign in 1971 and serving as a member of the University of Washington's Board of Regents since 1997. Bill and his late wife, Mary Maxwell Gates, raised three children: Kristianne, Bill and Libby. Now married to Mimi Gardner Gates, Bill continues to lend his vision and skill to many civic programs, cultural organizations and business initiatives.
Patty Stonesifer, Co-Chair and President of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, helps lead the group's mission to improve access to advances in global health and learning for all people as we move into the 21st century. In addition to her responsibilities with the foundation, Stonesifer is an active community volunteer, donating both time and resources to a number of regional nonprofit organizations including the YWCA of King County and the Seattle Foundation. She also is on the board of Alaska Air Group, Inc., Amazon.com and CBS Corporation. Prior to being asked by Bill and Melinda Gates to launch the work of the foundation, Stonesifer held a senior vice president position at Microsoft and ran her own management consulting firm, working with such corporations as DreamWorks SKG. Executive Committee Richard Akeroyd Richard Akeroyd joined the Gates Learning Foundation in December 1997, having spent 25 years working with public libraries in a variety of roles. Most recently, he served 11 years as Connecticut State Librarian, responsible for statewide library operations and policy implementation. Akeroyd has held leadership positions at the Denver Public Library and was program and planning consultant to the White House Conference on Library and Information Services. He began his career at the University of Connecticut Library, with additional service at the Manchester Public and Connecticut State Libraries. Akeroyd holds a master's degree in library science from the University of Pittsburgh and a bachelor's degree from the University of Connecticut. He also studied at the University of Connecticut, focusing on advanced coursework in educational media and instructional technology. He is a long-time member of a number of professional associations, including the American Library Association, the American Society for Information Science and the Coalition for Networked Information. Jack Faris, Ph.D Jack Faris coordinates communications and helps guide the strategic direction for the foundation. With a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Chicago, Faris has more than 23 years of experience in communications and community relations. Among his community activities, his role as immediate past president of the Seattle Public Library Foundation stands out. Professionally, Faris most recently acted as executive vice president and general manager at Cole & Weber where he provided strategic direction to clients such as Boeing and Safeco, while sharing management responsibilities with the president. Faris serves on the boards of the Alliance for Education, Urban Enterprise Center, the Seattle Center Foundation and others. Allan C. Golston, CPA Allan Golston joined the foundation in January 2000 and oversees the financial and administrative functions. His professional background includes nonprofit healthcare, software development, consulting, education, and public accounting. Golston serves as a trustee for Artist Trust and Make-A-Wish Foundation serving Washington, Alaska, Montana, and Northern Idaho. He is an alumnus of INROADS Denver and is a fellow of the British-American Project. Golston earned his MBA from Seattle University and his bachelor's degree from the University of Colorado. Terry Meersman Terry Meersman brings 22 years of program and management experience with several nonprofit organizations, including Save the Children Federation, the Pew Charitable Trusts, and World Learning. While at Save the Children, Meersman held several positions including director of refugee programs, executive vice president/chief operating officer and served as acting president during a change in organizational leadership. As venture fund officer for Pew Charitable Trusts, Meersman helped restructure a major grantmaking program in population and environment, and designed a new grantmaking strategy for a program designed to transform young adults into active global citizens. Meersman served as Director of Policy Analysis for the Seattle City Council, directing the 12-member policy group that developed policy recommendations for council members on issues affecting citizens. Meersman joined the foundation in October 1998 and served as the first head of finance and administration during the start up phase. He now directs grants administration and serves as Senior Program Officer for the co-chairs of the foundation. Gordon W. Perkin, M.D. Prior to joining the foundation, Dr. Perkin served as president of the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH), an international nonprofit dedicated to improving health, especially of women and children. As a physician with more than 35 years of experience in international health and family planning, Perkin also spent 14 years with the Ford Foundation, where he worked as program officer in a variety of international health and population projects. He served as a long-term consultant to the World Health Organization (WHO) on the design and research strategy of the Special Programme in Human Reproduction and has consulted with several other WHO programs. He served as a member of the Committee on Contraceptive Development of the National Academy of Sciences and as a board member of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the Alan Guttmacher Institute and the National Council for International Health. Tom Vander Ark Tom Vander Ark is responsible for the foundation's elementary and secondary education programs and for higher education scholarships. Prior to joining the foundation he was a public school superintendent in Federal Way, Washington. With a wide-ranging business background, Vander Ark was one of the first business executives recruited to run a public school district. Vander Ark has been actively involved in civic and educational causes, including United Way, Boys and Girls Club, and Boy Scouts, and he is a member of numerous national educational associations. Photographers: Bill and Melinda Gates photo: Jeff Christensen; Bill Gates Sr. photo: Piyamon Sukplang; Patty Stonesifer photo: Jeff Christensen |
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