Read our Q&A with six departing members to learn their biggest takeaways from serving their alma mater on the Alumni Association Board of Governors.

What did you find most fulfilling about your service?
Getting a preview of strategic vision of the institution directly from the president and senior leadership.

What specific moment or event was most memorable for you?
BTS tour of facilities, all experiences with students, and women’s conference.

What is something you gained in this experience and something you will leave behind as part of your legacy?
Networking with fellow board members, alums and University Relations staff, as well as committee involvement and leadership for student scholarships.

Cooper served as an At-Large member on the board. She is the AVP, Integrated Marketing & Brand Management at
The Johns Hopkins University.

What did you find most fulfilling about your service?
Contributing to the Talent Management initiative.

What specific moment or event was most memorable for you?
I enjoyed all our Governance Committee meetings.

What is something you gained in this experience and something you will leave behind as part of your legacy?
Establishment of DEI Committee.

Cousins served as an At-Large member on the board. She is a Global Officer, HR Operations and Partnerships at Marriott International, Inc.

What did you find most fulfilling about your service?
Building relationships with other board members and learning/experiencing how a highly functioning non-profit board works.

What specific moment or event was most memorable for you?
Going to games with my children and bonding with fellow members was very fulfilling.

What is something you gained in this experience and something you will leave behind as part of your legacy?
I gained board experience. I view our renewed plan as part of my legacy, along with helping support Black Alumni Weekend planning. I thoroughly enjoyed my time.

Lewis served as an At-Large member on the board. He is a Delegate for District 24, Maryland House of Delegates.

What did you find most fulfilling about your service?
Recruiting / interviewing other board members and learning how they could contribute to our growth and success. Always fascinating meeting such talented Terps from various career paths.

What specific moment or event was most memorable for you?
Representing the Alumni Association as a Commencement speaker. Ok, and another one—the Terps Award Gala is always impressive!

What is something you gained in this experience and something you will leave behind as part of your legacy?
I gained a bigger Terps network and also got a better understanding of the inner-workings of the university.

Rivest served as Past-President of the board. He is the retired president and CEO of the University of Maryland Medical Center.

What did you find most fulfilling about your service?
Spirit and momentum at the University

What specific moment or event was most memorable for you?
Receving the Spirit of Maryland Award

What is something you gained in this experience and something you will leave behind as part of your legacy?
Friendship and helping set the Samuel Riggs IV Alumni Center up for success.

Spencer served as Past-President of the board. He is Executive Vice President and CFO of the BGB Group in Baltimore.

What did you find most fulfilling about your service?
Reengaging with the university in a meaningful way. Contributing to its strategic guidance. Engaging with students.

What specific moment or event was most memorable for you?
I really enjoyed serving on the Governance Committee this term. The group was a fantastic blend of talents that worked extremely well together. I thought we got through some sticky situations presented to us with ease. We were effective with upgrading the bylaws using newer, macro trends.

What is something you gained in this experience and something you will leave behind as part of your legacy?
As far as legacy, I think my idea to get broader touchpoints and involvement with alums through working with our engineering and computer science teams will bear fruit if implemented, leading to larger involvement and larger pools of fundraising. The experience I gained was the great potential strength of the alums, and the great people involved with the AA. There is a lot of work we can do to get more people involved to create the feel-good moments we have in reconnecting with the university.

Wood served as an At-Large member of the board. She is President and Chief Executive Officer of VIDA Diagnostics, Inc.