Briar Cliff Announces New Board of Trustee Updates
November 2, 2021
Briar Cliff University is pleased to welcome new members to its Board of Trustees:
Lisa Bertrand, J.D. (Corporate Counsel for Tyson Foods) is a graduate of Drake University Law School, and has served on boards for United Way of Siouxland, Women Aware of Siouxland, and Siouxland Habitat for Humanity. She is currently the City of Sioux City – Civil Service Commissioner and has served as an adjunct professor for BCU.
Oscar Gomez ’04 (Assistant City Administrator for South Sioux City, NE) is a graduate of Briar Cliff University, having previously worked in the banking industry. He served on the South Sioux City Council for a decade, serving as President for four, and has previously served on the BCU Board of Trustees.
Darrell Jesse, J.D. (Partner at Crary Huff Law Firm) is a graduate of the University of South Dakota Law School and a retired Colonel of the South Dakota Air Force Reserve, having also served in the South Dakota Air National Guard. He serves as a Board Advisor to the Dakota Valley Business Council, the Sioux Gateway Airport Board, and is a former Board Chair for the Siouxland Chamber of Commerce. Additionally, Jesse has served as a community member of BCU’s Audit Committee for the past two years.
Dan Moore, J.D. (Partner at Moore Corbett Heffernan Moeller & Meis) is a graduate of Drake University Law School. He is a former President of the Iowa State Bar Association and former Chairman for the Sioux City Planning and Zoning Commission. He currently serves as a Member of the City Council for Sioux City and on the Board of Directors for Jackson Recovery Centers of Sioux City.
Bertrand, Gomez, Jesse, and Moore join current trustees Steven Freeman ’69, Chair of the Board; Nick Roth, Vice Chair of the Board; Dr. Rachelle Keck, Secretary of the Board; Bailey Aalfs; Ken Beaulieu; Gail Bernstein ’87; Pam Duzik ’02; Sr. Renae Hohensee ’07; Sr. Kathy Knipper; Most Reverend R. Walker Nickless; Mark Schuett, Chair of the Audit Committee; Jane Shey ’79, Chair of the Academic Affairs, Student Development & Enrollment Committee; David Simmons ’80, Chair of the Governance Committee; Sr. Marge Staudt ’69; Mary Sterk; Dr. Patrick Walsh; and Mark Ward ’02, Chair of the University Relations Committee and Interim Chair of Finance Committee.
The University is also pleased to announce new leadership. Mark Ward ’02, CEO of Ward Electric Company, has been elected as Chair of the Board of Trustees, commencing March 2022. The current Chair of the Board, Steven Freeman ’69, has served as Chair since Fall 2017.