Nine Trustees Join the UC San Diego Foundation Board

Article Content

UC San Diego Geisel Library. Photo by Erik Jepsen, Publications.

Amid the uncertainty of the spring and summer of 2020, the UC San Diego Foundation welcomed a new class of trustees, the first group to be recruited and elected in an entirely virtual setting. This year’s class, which includes six UC San Diego alumni, is the most diverse to date, and brings to the board a wide range of expertise and community connections from San Diego to Washington, D.C. 

The mission of the UC San Diego Foundation is to foster and promote support for UC San Diego through charitable giving, advocacy, leadership, consultation and fiduciary duty, and to assist the Chancellor and other campus leaders through outreach to the community. Featuring 44 trustees and 34 trustee emeriti, the board is chaired by Steve Hart, who graduated in 1980 with an MA in Mathematics. He says, “The Foundation Board continues to find new and creative ways to be involved and engaged with UC San Diego in the virtual space. We look forward to the exciting things to come this year.” 

The 2020 class of incoming trustees includes:

Kurt Campbell

Kurt Campbell

Kurt M. Campbell, Ph.D., is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Asia Group, LLC, a strategic advisory and capital management group specializing in the dynamic Asia Pacific region. From 2009 to 2013, he served as the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, where he is widely credited as a key architect of the “pivot to Asia.” In 2013, he was awarded the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service award – the nation’s highest diplomatic honor. He earned a bachelor’s degree from UC San Diego in 1980 and a doctorate in international relations from Brasenose College at Oxford University, where he was a Distinguished Marshall Scholar.

Nathan East

Nathan East

Nathan East is recognized as one of the most recorded musicians in music, credited on over 2,000 recordings. He’s a founding member of contemporary jazz supergroup Fourplay and is known for his musical collaborations with Eric Clapton, Phil Collins, Quincy Jones, Anita Baker, George Harrison, BB King, Stevie Wonder and Daft Punk. East’s debut album went to #1 on Billboard’s Jazz Charts and won a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album. East, a 1978 UC San Diego graduate with a bachelor’s degree in Music, was honored by the United States Congress with a Congressional Record for his contribution to the worldwide music community. 

Antonio Grillo-López

Antonio Grillo- López, M.D.

Antonio Grillo-López, M.D., has been instrumental in the development of over 25 anticancer agents. He was chief medical officer (IDEC Pharmaceuticals) responsible for the development of Rituxan and Zevalin. He has served on several advisory boards including the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship, UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center, and on the FDA’s Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC). Grillo- López trained in hematology/oncology at the University of Puerto Rico where he was program director, Hematology/Oncology. He held faculty appointments there and at the University of Michigan (Associate Professor of Medicine). He has authored over 400 publications.

William Jones

William Jones

William Jones is president of CityLink Investment Corporation and formerly served as the lead independent director of Sempra Energy, a Fortune 500 company. Previously, he was director and board chair of several investment funds managed by the Capital Group with net assets over $500 billion. His background also includes service as a director of the San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank; chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank, Los Angeles Branch; trustee of the University of San Diego; board chair of Francis Parker School; City Councilmember; and founder of Project I Believe Scholarship Program. Jones earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of San Diego and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Robert Marren

Robert Marren

Robert Marren recently retired from a nearly 30-year career managing equity portfolios for Allianz Global Investors and Duncan-Hurst Capital Management. He earned a bachelor’s degree in Management Science from UC San Diego in 1986, and an MBA from Duke University. Marren is a long-time member of the UC San Diego Foundation’s Investment/Finance Committee and has served as a mentor to numerous participants in the Student Foundation mentorship program.  

James Ong

James Ong, M.D.

A native of Taiwan, James Ong, M.D., immigrated to the United States with his family at the age of 14. He grew up in Southern California and graduated from UC Berkeley and in 1989, earned a medical degree from the UC San Diego School of Medicine. Ong practices Cardiac Electrophysiology in Los Angeles. In addition to the reverence for his field of medicine, his interests include history, economics, photography, genealogy, philately, numismatics and world travel. He is also a published author of nonfiction and several scientific papers. 

Scott Wolfe

Scott N. Wolfe

Scott N. Wolfe served as a partner with the law firm Latham & Watkins LLP from 1978 to 2017, including partner-in-charge of the North County San Diego office, and continues to be of counsel with the firm. He is a trustee and former chairman of Rady Children’s Hospital Board of Directors, and a former owner of the San Diego Padres. He has been a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council of the UC San Diego Rady School of Management, where he has lectured on venture capital and mergers and acquisitions for many years. Wolfe graduated from Harvard University with a bachelor’s degree as well as J.D. and MBA degrees. 

Sally WongAvery

Sally WongAvery 

Sally WongAvery earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy in 1975 from UC San Diego and J.D. from CalWestern Law School. She has been involved in the San Diego community in many roles. A lawyer, she has also served as executive director of the Chinese Service Center of San Diego, ESL instructor to Chinese seniors, principal of the Chinese School of San Diego, co-founder the Chinese Historical Society, first female president of the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association, and first Chinese Certified Food Handling Instructor in San Diego. Her honors include: Outstanding Teaching Award by the Southern California Council of Chinese Schools, Susan B. Anthony Leadership Award, and recipient of the Ellis Island Award.

Kimberley Phillips-Boehm

Kimberley Phillips-Boehm 

Kimberley Phillips Boehm, currently UC San Diego Alumni Board president, is a retired university academic and administrator. After holding an endowed chair at The College of William and Mary, she served as Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Brooklyn College-CUNY and Provost and Dean of the Faculty at Mills College. In addition to the UC San Diego Alumni Board, she serves on numerous other community boards, including LEAD San Diego, San Diego Grantmakers and Reality Changers. Phillips-Boehm received a bachelor’s degree in 1982 from UC San Diego and doctorate from Yale University.