Claremont McKenna College’s Board of Trustees elected a new Chair of the Board, Kenneth Valach ’82, effective July 1. Valach succeeds David G. Mgrublian ’82 P’11, who has been Chair since 2014.
The Board also elected Betsy Korn ’90 as a Regular Trustee and Jennifer Lew ’94 P’25 as an Alumna Trustee. Peter K. Barker ’70 P’01, a Regular Trustee since 1992, and Robert Nakasone ’69 P’98, a Regular Trustee since 1988, were named Life Trustees.
Read briefly about the new Chair and Board of Trustees members below.
Kenneth Valach ’82
Board Chair
Valach met his wife, Janie ’82, while at CMC. Surrounded by more than a dozen classmates and a large family cheering section, they recently returned to campus for the formal dedication of Valach Hall—home to Janie’s Kitchen, which the couple established in 2015. A native of Salem, Ore., Valach is the chief executive officer (CEO) of Crow Holdings Development (CHD), a leading national real estate development company specializing in multifamily, industrial, and office projects across the United States. He has been involved with the Board of Trustees since 2009. Valach earned his BA in Economics and Math, cum laude, from CMC, and his MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business.
Betsy Korn ’90
Regular Trustee
Korn has combined a successful career as a sports marketing entrepreneur with a lifetime commitment to supporting education and leadership of national and international political and charitable organizations. She serves as chair of the board of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and is its immediate past president. Previously, she authored a series of successful sports guidebooks for female fans, which led to national and local media appearances. Korn earned her BA in International Relations from CMC and her MBA from the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management of Northwestern University.
Jennifer Lew ’94 P’25
Alumna Trustee
Lew is executive vice president and chief financial officer (CFO) of Annexon Biosciences in San Francisco, where she has played a significant role in the company’s financial strategy and operations. Previously, Lew served as CFO for Aduro Biotech, Inc. and held various financial roles at Dynavax Technologies Corporation. She began her career at Ernst & Young. Lew earned a BA in Economics/Accounting and Government from CMC, where she was also a McKenna Scholar and Washington, DC Program participant. Her daughter, Lindsay ’25, is an Economics and Government major.
Two additional appointments were made as Ex Officio Trustees: Antoine Grant ’07 is the incoming President of the Claremont McKenna College Alumni Association (CMCAA) and Dahlia Jabro P’26 is the incoming President of the CMC Parent Network Board, succeeding Scott Torrey ’91 P’23 P’26 and Allison Aldrich P’24 respectively.
Antoine Grant ’07
Ex Officio Trustee
Grant is an investor in early-stage technology companies, turnaround opportunities, and real estate, based in Los Angeles. Previously, Grant led bathroom and kitchen renovation businesses for Wayfair. He has also been an associate partner at McKinsey & Company and a management consultant at Bain & Company. Grant earned his BA in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE), with a sequence in Leadership, from CMC, and his MBA from The Wharton School of The University of Pennsylvania. He has been a CMCAA committee member and board member since 2021.
Dahlia Jabro P’26
Ex Officio Trustee
Jabro is a regional marketer/hematology account manager at Acrotech Biopharma. She earned her BA in History and her Master of Public Health from San Diego State University. Her son, Matthew ’26, is a Data Science major with a Pre-Med pathway and a CMS Cross Country and Track & Field team member.