LSU Foundation Welcomes New Board of Directors Members, Nears 100-Member Mark for National Board
01/15/2020
BATON ROUGE – The LSU Foundation recently welcomed four new members to its Board of
Directors and has welcomed nearly 100 members to its National Board, introduced in
fall 2018.
New LSU Foundation Board of Directors members, serving four-year terms, are LSU alumni Bradie James of Fairview, Texas; George E. Robinson III, D.V.M., M.S.P.H., of Chicago, Ill.; Elizabeth H. Ronn of Palo Alto, Calif.; and Jyric Sims of Arlington, Texas.
“Our new Board of Directors members bring a wealth of expertise in a range of fields, and they broaden our reach in key markets where LSU alumni and friends live and support LSU outside of Louisiana,” said Board Chairperson Clarence Cazatlot Jr. “They have quickly and enthusiastically stepped up to serve in leadership roles focused on achieving the ambitious goals of LSU’s $1.5 billion Fierce for the Future Campaign.”
The LSU Foundation National Board is a national network of volunteer ambassadors who are committed to catalyzing transformational philanthropic support of LSU. National Board members identify and engage LSU with individuals, corporations, and foundations in their regions by hosting events and stewarding donors and prospective donors. National Board members are invited to serve up to two consecutive three-year terms. The National Board is non-fiduciary.
“Achieving LSU’s philanthropic potential requires thinking far beyond annual fundraising and immediate projects,” said Robert M. Stuart Jr., LSU Foundation National Board chairperson and president and CEO of the LSU Foundation. “Today, tomorrow and in the years ahead, philanthropy will forge the critical link that brings LSU’s ambitions to life. The LSU Foundation National Board is focused on driving long-term philanthropic growth at LSU by engaging Tigers throughout the country.”
The National Board currently includes members living in 13 states and the District of Columbia: Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Nevada, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Washington, and Washington, D.C. A complete roster of the National Board, which includes all LSU Foundation Board of Directors members, is online at lsufoundation.org/nationalboard.
About Bradie James
New LSU Foundation Board of Directors member Bradie James of Fairview, Texas, earned
a bachelor’s degree in criminology from LSU’s College of Arts & Sciences, now known
as the College of Humanities & Social Sciences, in 2003. He established himself as
a business leader both independently and when leading a team, developing skills as
a National Scholar Athlete and All-American linebacker at LSU, then as team captain
for the Dallas Cowboys. He is a retired linebacker in the National Football League,
through which he played for the Cowboys and the Houston Texans. Following a 10-year
professional football career, James applied his leadership skills to the business
world and helped establish The Trust, an NFL Players Association program that assists
former players with the transition out of professional football. Additional business
activities include being a multi-unit, multi-brand restaurant owner and serving on
several boards.
James is founder of Bradie James Foundation 56 (created in memory of his mother), which supports education, mammogram screenings, diagnostic testing and social therapy programs for breast cancer patients and survivors. At LSU, he was the second player ever to register more than 400 career tackles, was Defensive MVP of the 2000 Peach Bowl, and was the first LSU linebacker since 1972 to achieve All-SEC honors two years in a row. James was the first player to lead the Cowboys in tackles for more than three straight seasons; he led in this area for six consecutive years, the longest streak in franchise history. James was the 2010 Recipient of the POTUS National Service Award, was LSU Alumni Association’s 2012 Young Alumnus of the Year, is a member of LSU’s National Diversity Advisory Board and Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, and is a 2019 inductee of the LSU Athletics Hall of Fame.
About George E. Robinson III, D.V.M., M.S.P.H.
George E. Robinson III, D.V.M., M.S.P.H., of Chicago, Illinois, earned a Doctor of
Veterinary Medicine degree from LSU’s School of Veterinary Medicine in 1981. He also
holds degrees from the Howard University School of Medicine and Southern University.
He is the president and CEO of Heartland Veterinary Partners, a Chicago-based veterinary
support organization. Prior to joining Heartland Veterinary Partners, Dr. Robinson
held senior management and operational roles at National Veterinary Associates and
Banfield Pet Hospital and owned and operated successful veterinary hospitals in Louisiana.
While practicing in New Orleans, he served on numerous blue-ribbon panels and civic
and governmental boards, including as chairman of the New Orleans City Planning and
Zoning Commission.
Dr. Robinson previously served as vice president of the Louisiana Board of Veterinary Medicine and is a class agent for the LSU SVM. He also served as the chairman of the Practice Advisory Panel of the American Veterinary Medical Association, which notably wrote the AVMA Report on Telemedicine. He was named the LSU SVM Distinguished Alumnus for 2018 and gave the school’s commencement address in May of that year. He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc.
About Elizabeth H. Ronn
Elizabeth Hodge Ronn of Palo Alto, Calif., is a 1976 graduate of what is now known
as the LSU College of Humanities & Social Sciences, having earned a bachelor’s degree
with honors in economics. At LSU, she was in the Honors Division, now the Roger Hadfield
Ogden Honors College. She also holds an MBA from the Stanford University Graduate
School of Business. Ronn is a partner at Innovation Portfolio Partners, a Silicon
Valley-based firm that helps CEOs and the top management of Fortune 500 companies
find and develop new-to-the-world products and services. She co-founded VC-backed
Butterfly Health Inc., which sold to Domtar in 2015.
Ronn is the former vice president of marketing at the Procter & Gamble Co., where she worked from 1984 until her retirement in 2009. While at P&G, she was responsible for the marketing of over half of its brands, representing $45 billion in sales. In 1999, Ronn was named to the inaugural class of Harley Procter Marketers, recognized as the best long-term business-building marketers in P&G who have achieved sustained, outstanding brand-building results. Ronn serves on the Board of Directors of Health2047 Inc; is chair of the Governance Council of WANDA (Women’s Achievement Network and Development Alliance), a nonprofit helping single moms in Silicon Valley break the cycle of poverty; is on the LSU Ogden Honors College Advisory Board; is on the Board of the Stanford Red Barn; is a volunteer teacher at Sequoia High School in Redwood City, Calif., in the Future Profits program; and advises several startup firms in marketing and strategic positioning.
About Jyric Sims
Jyric Sims of Arlington, Texas, is a 2005 graduate of LSU, where he earned a bachelor’s
degree in kinesiology from what is now known as the College of Human Sciences & Education.
He also holds a Master of Science in Healthcare Administration from University of
Arkansas for Medical Sciences and a certificate in health care leadership from Harvard
University. Sims serves as president and CEO of Medical City Fort Worth, a health
system that includes a 320-bed medical center, four urgent care centers, an ambulatory
surgery center, two freestanding emergency rooms, and more than 1,200 employees. He
previously served as senior vice president and COO of Tulane Health System in New
Orleans, La., and in executive roles in hospitals in Port St. Lucie, Fla.; Houston,
Texas; and Little Rock, Ark. Sims has received numerous accolades, including 2018
Young Healthcare Executive of the Year by the DFW Hospital Council, 2017 National
Healthcare Executive of the Year by the National Association of Healthcare Executives,
2017 Alumnus of the Year by University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, and 2016
Modern Healthcare Up and Comer. He was also appointed to serve on a national delegation
to Israel. Sims is an active member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc., serves on
the LSU National Diversity Advisory Board, and is an adjunct faculty member at Tulane
University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine.
About the LSU Foundation
The LSU Foundation cultivates and invests in philanthropic partnerships to advance
LSU’s academic priorities. For more information about the LSU Foundation Board of
Directors, visit lsufoundation.org/board. For more information about the LSU Foundation National Board, visit lsufoundation.org/nationalboard.
Contact Sara Whittaker
LSU Foundation
225-578-8164"
swhittaker@lsufoundation.org
or
Ernie Ballard
LSU Media Relations
225-578-5685
eballa1@lsu.edu