Jon Sundvold while working television for a Mizzou basketball broadcast

Jon Sundvold while working television for a Mizzou basketball broadcast

Gov. Jay Nixon appointed three members of the University of Missouri Board of Curators, including former basketball star Jon Sundvold.

He was an All-American basketball player for the University of Missouri from 1979 to 1983, Sundvold is a member of the university’s Athletic Hall of Fame and was honored by the MU Alumni Association as an outstanding alumnus in 2009. After playing in the NBA for nine years, he became a college basketball analyst for ESPN and CBS and is currently a color analyst on the SEC Network for Tiger games.

Sundvold is also president of the Missouri Junior Golf Foundation which recently opened a nine-hole course in Jefferson City designed specifically to meet the needs of children and individuals with disabilities.

“It is vitally important that the University of Missouri System has the leadership it needs to continue to be an internationally-recognized model of academic excellence,” Gov. Nixon said. “I appreciate this immensely qualified and diverse group of leaders for stepping up at this critical time to serve this institution, its students and our state. With a full complement of members, the Board of Curators is well-positioned to complete the task of selecting the next system President in the next few months.”

Governor Nixon also appointed:

Thomas R. Voss (I), of Eureka, is the former CEO of Ameren Corp. and currently the Chairman of Smart Wires, a global grid optimization company. Voss previously served as chairman of the St. Louis Regional Chamber and led the chamber during its nine-month national search for a president and CEO. A U.S. Air Force veteran, Voss earned a degree in electrical engineering from the University of Missouri-Rolla, now Missouri University of Science & Technology. He and his wife, Carol, have three children, all of whom are graduates of University of Missouri institutions, including the University of Missouri and the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

Mary E. Nelson (D), of St. Louis, is general counsel and chief legal officer for the St. Louis Community College District and previously served as an Administrative Hearing Commissioner. She currently serves on the State Highways and Transportation Commission and, from 2002 to 2004, served on the Board of Police Commissioners for the City of St. Louis. Nelson also served as general counsel for the Kwame Building Group. Nelson obtained her undergraduate degree from Princeton University and her law degree from the University of Missouri. A past president of the Mound City Bar Association, Nelson has had a diversity scholarship established in her honor at the University of Missouri School of Law to attract and retain women and minority students.

The Governor has also nominated Gene Patrick Graham, of Columbia, as the student representative to the University of Missouri Board of Curators. The position of student representative rotates between the four campuses, with the 2016-2018 term belonging to the University of Missouri – Columbia. Graham was one of three applicants submitted to the Governor for consideration by student leadership of the nominating campus and an organization of student leaders from across the University of Missouri system.

Earlier this year, Gov. Nixon nominated Graham as the student representative to the University of Missouri Board of Curators but the nomination was not taken up by the Missouri Senate. The Governor withdrew the nomination and today appointed Graham to the board.