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June 24, 2005

BOARD OF REGENTS SELECTS NEW CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR

(TOPEKA) – Yesterday the Kansas Board of Regents elected a new Chair and Vice Chair. The nine-member Board elected Donna Shank of Liberal as the new Chair and Nelson Galle of Manhattan as the new Vice Chair.

Donna Shank was appointed to the Board by Governor Bill Graves in 2002, and has served as the Board’s Vice Chair since 2004. She is the Vice President and Co-Owner of Al Shank Insurance, Inc. in Liberal, is an Accredited Advisor in Insurance, and has been a licensed insurance agent since 1984.

Shank currently serves on the Higher Learning Commission Accreditation Review Council, as a Wichita State University (WSU) Alumni Association member, on the Governor’s Economic Policy Council, the Liberal High School Site Council, on the Board of the Kansas Business Hall of Fame, and as the Kansas Prosperity Summit Southwest Region Co-Chair. Her past civic involvement includes the Kansas Children’s Cabinet, Kansas Council for the Future of Post-Secondary Education, Leadership Liberal Board Chair, Liberal Chamber Ambassador, and Kansas Chamber of Commerce and Industry Board Member.

Shank earned an associate’s degree from Seward County Community College and a bachelor’s degree from WSU. She is also a graduate of the Leadership Liberal and Leadership Kansas programs. Shank and her husband, Al, have three children.
“I look forward to my continued work with this dedicated group of professionals who truly believe in the quality, efficient and accessible higher education system that Kansans deserve,” Shank said. “As a mother of a child currently attending a state university, I am anxious to continue exploring funding mechanisms that help reduce the financial stress on our institutions while also addressing the financial burden on our students.”

Nelson Galle was appointed to the Board by Governor Kathleen Sebelius in 2003, and currently serves as the Chair of the Board’s Fiscal Affairs and Audit Committee. He is currently retired after a career in agribusiness, primarily with the Hesston Corporation, a manufacturer of farm machinery.

As a volunteer, Galle has supported education by serving on a variety of boards including: Chair of the Hesston College President’s Advisory Council, Chair of the State Advisory Council for Career Education in Kansas, Chair of the Board of Trustees and Executive Committee of the Kansas State University Foundation, National Chair of the Kansas State University Alumni Association, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Huck Boyd Institute for Rural Development, and Member of the Kansas Agricultural and Rural Leadership Board of Directors. Galle and his family were selected as the Kansas 4-H Family of the Year in 1980.

Galle graduated from Kansas State University where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Education and a Masters degree in Adult and Occupational Education. He also holds a graduate degree from the Harvard Business School. Galle and his wife, Marilyn, have three sons and six grandchildren.

“I am honored to be selected by my peers on the Board of Regents to serve as Vice Chair,” Galle said. “It is truly an honor to have the opportunity to advocate on behalf of higher education in Kansas and I look forward to a successful year."

Shank and Galle will both serve one-year leadership terms that begin July 1.

June 24th 2005 Release PDF

For more information contact:
Kip Peterson, Director for Government Relations & Communications, at (785) 296-3421.

Visit the Kansas Board of Regents on the Web at www.kansasregents.org.