Forums Institute

Robert A. Bowman is executive director and chief executive officer of the NJ Community College Consortium for Workforce & Economic Development and founding director and CEO of the Collegiate Consortium for Workforce and Economic Development. He has also held executive positions with Strick Companies and Carrier Corporation, and served as executive director of the Commission for the Universities of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education and associate director of the Arizona Commission for Postsecondary Education. The author of numerous articles on education, he holds a bachelor of business administration degree from George Washington University and an Ed.D. from Rutgers University.

Marybeth Kelman served as board chair from 1998 to 2005. She is a health benefits consultant to the New Jersey Department of the Treasury, where she directs administration and research for the State Health Benefits Commission. She previously served as executive director of the Eye Screening Coordinating Council of New Jersey; a policy analyst for the New Jersey Department of Human Services; and as program director of health promotion for the New Jersey Hospital Association. Former president of the League of Women Voters of the Princeton Area, she has been a trustee of the Women's Health and Counseling Center of Somerville, N.J. and the North Princeton Developmental Center. A registered nurse, she holds a masters degree in political science from Rutgers University.

Linda Mather is founding chief executive officer of Forums Institute. As such, she provides the day-to-day management and strategic guidance of a nonprofit leader. She also offers the expertise of a Professional Facilitator certified by the International Association of Facilitators (IAF). Dr. Mather has worked as an independent consultant and with the Board Member Institute as a trainer for nonprofits in areas including board development, board staff relationships, strategic planning and leadership. She has served as interim dean of the School of Arts and Communication at William Paterson College and as associate director at the New Jersey Department of Higher Education. She has also consulted for the Kellogg Foundation, the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, and the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. She holds a doctorate in education from the University of Pennsylvania.

Haskell Rhett is chairman of the board of trustees of Forums Institute. He is president emeritus of The Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation and has served as vice president of The College Board and assistant chancellor of the New Jersey Department of Higher Education, where he was responsible for developing and administering the $1 billion budget for the state's higher education system and for managing its financial aid programs. He has been chairman of the board of trustees of The College of New Jersey (formerly Trenton State College) and a trustee of Dominican University of California and Governor Dummer Academy. An alumnus of Hamilton College, he holds a M.A. and Ph.D. from Cornell University and has held fellowships at Harvard and London Universities.

C. Jeremiah "Jerry" Ryan is president of Bergen Community College. He was a Post Doctoral Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University for the 2005-2006 academic year, studying the politics and leadership of the non-profit sector. He is the author of four books and more than 40 articles about higher education. In addition to serving a number of national and statewide organizations, Dr. Ryan serves on the boards of directors of the Hunterdon Healthcare System, The Chubb Foundation, Kids Voting New Jersey, Hunterdon County Chamber of Commerce, Greater Raritan Workforce Investment Board, United Way of Somerset County, Literacy Volunteers of American and the Business Partnership of Somerset County.

Barbara H. Trought has led several nonprofit organizations, serving as a member of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection's Tidelands Resource Council, a moderator of candidate forums for the New Jersey League of Women Voters and as a member of groups working to provide affordable housing for low- and moderate-income persons in Moorestown, NJ. She is an alumna of Douglass College, Rutgers University.

Richard White is an attorney with more than twenty years of legal and business experience in the public, private and non-profit sectors. He has worked most recently with the New Jersey State Department of the Treasury on procurement reform and compliance initiatives. Previously, Mr. White served as general counsel for two international companies.

Board of Trustees