Five New Members Elected to Grinnell College's Board of Trustees

The Grinnell College Board of Trustees recently elected five new members to four-year terms. They are:

• California residents Stephen G. Moyer ’79 and Saumil Parikh ’99;
• Grinnell resident Angela Onwuachi-Willig ’94;
• Atlanta resident Dr. Kimberly Kuncl ’87; and
• Minneapolis resident G. Barry Huff ’73.

The role of the trustees is to assure the “great and lasting good” of Grinnell College. Through their commitment to institutional stewardship, shrewd financial investments, and prudent management, the trustees have enabled Grinnell to become a leading liberal arts college noted for its rigorous academics, diversity, community, and commitment to exploring issues of justice on campus and beyond.

Stephen G. Moyer ’79

Moyer, a Los Angeles resident, is president of Distressed Debt Alpha and serves as an adjunct professor at the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business, where he teaches undergraduate, graduate, executive MBA, and online courses. After initially practicing law, he worked in the investment banking and asset management industries for more than 30 years. His prior positions included portfolio manager at Pacific Investment Management Co. (PIMCO) and director at Tennenbaum Capital Partners.

He is author of Distressed Debt Analysis: Strategies for Speculative Investors, which is considered a leading text in the field. Moyer is a chartered financial analyst and has passed the Uniform Certified Public Accounting Examination. He earned his B.A. in economics from Grinnell in 1979 and received an Alumni Award in 1995 for his professional achievements and community service. He holds an MBA from the University of Chicago School of Business and a J.D. from Stanford Law School.

Saumil Parikh ’99

Parikh, who came to Grinnell College from Mumbai, India, currently holds dual residency in Newport Beach, California, and Vancouver, Canada. He is a retired managing director and portfolio manager of PIMCO, where he oversaw a host of different funds covering bonds, mixed assets, and commodities during his tenure. Prior to joining the company in 2000, Parikh was an economist for UBS Investment Bank.

He established the Parikh McCulley Scholarship at Grinnell College in honor of his father, Harish Parikh, and his mentor, Paul McCulley ’79. The scholarship assists international students who demonstrate significant financial need. Parikh graduated Phi Beta Kappa and received a B.A. in general science biology and economics from Grinnell in 1999.

Angela Onwuachi-Willig ’94

Onwuachi-Willig, of Grinnell, Iowa, is dean and professor of law at Boston University School of Law. A renowned legal scholar and expert in racial and gender inequality as well as civil rights law, Onwuachi-Willig previously served as Chancellor’s Professor of Law at the University of California-Berkeley, and Charles and Marion Kierscht Professor of Law at the University of Iowa. She also was a visiting professor in political science at Grinnell in spring 2016. Prior to these positions, she served as assistant professor of law at the University of California-Davis and a labor and employment/litigation associate at both Jones Day and Foley Hoag. She has published extensively in leading law journals and is author of According to Our Hearts: Rhinelander v. Rhinelander and the Law of the Multiracial Family. In addition, she is a past Iowa Supreme Court finalist and a past recipient of the Derrick A. Bell Jr. and Clyde Ferguson Awards. She also is a member of the American Law Institute and was previously listed on the National Law Journal’s “Minority 40 under 40” list.

She received a B.A. in American studies from Grinnell in 1994. As a student, she served as Student Government Association president during her junior year and was a student adviser and a member of the Multiethnic Coalition. In addition, she was a member of the track and field and women's rugby teams. She went on to earn a law degree from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and clerked for U.S. District Court Judge Solomon Oliver and U.S. Circuit Court Judge Karen Nelson Moore. She also earned a Master of Arts, a Master of Philosophy, and a Ph.D. in sociology and African American studies from Yale University. At Grinnell, she is a member of her class committee and the Multicultural Reunion Committee. She served as president of the Alumni Council and an ex-officio member of the college’s Board of Trustees in 2016–17.

Dr. Kimberly Kuncl ’87

Kuncl is a board-certified obstetrician and gynecologist with the WellStar Medical Group Cobb Gynecologists in suburban Atlanta. She was in private practice prior to joining WellStar. In addition to her clinical duties as a physician, she currently serves as chairperson for the Performance Improvement Committee for Women's Health for Cobb Hospital. Kuncl has helped educate and train various health care professionals over her years in practice including medical students, nurse practitioner students, midwifery students, and family practice residents from Emory University Family Practice Program. She has served as a risk management case presenter for The Doctors Company’s Georgia Physician Advisory Board.

Prior to her career in medicine, Kuncl was a research specialist at the University of Illinois Chicago Medical School and at Emory University School of Medicine. In her spare time, she has served on several community boards and is a founding member of the Lorde-Rustin Giving Circle, which has donated more than $250,000 to Atlanta-area charities. The Alumni Council honored Kuncl for her professional achievements and community service by presenting her with an Alumni Award. She holds a B.A. in biology from Grinnell College and an M.D. from Morehouse School of Medicine, which included her residency at St. John Hospital and Medical Center. 

G. Barry Huff ’73

Huff is a retired senior vice president of marketing and communications for the National Marrow Donor Program. He previously served as president of Glory Foods Inc., vice president of Hoopeston Foods, a partner in Becky Lerdal and Associates, and marketing manager of the Pillsbury Co. He recently received a Grinnell College Alumni Award for his service as a change-maker and community builder. He has held many leadership positions in a variety of nonprofit organizations such as the Guthrie Theatre Foundation, Eden Programs, Sabathani Community Center, Park Avenue Youth and Family Services, and the National Marrow Donor Program. 

He holds a B.A. in theatre from Grinnell, a master’s degree in speech and theatre from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and an MBA from the University of Iowa. In 1975 he returned to Grinnell to serve in the Office of the Dean of Students, leaving in 1981 as an associate dean. He was inducted into the Grinnell Athletics Hall of Fame in 2007 for football and men’s track and field. He has been an active alumni volunteer, serving on the Alumni Council and class committee, participating in Alumni in the Classroom, and being an inaugural representative of the college.

Re-Elected Trustees,
Alumni Council President/Ex-Officio Trustee

The Board of Trustees also voted to re-elect six trustees to new terms:

• Trish Fitzgibbons Anderson ’80
• David Braman ’75
• Sylvia Kwan
• Tobi Klein Marcus ’87
• George E. Moose ’66
• Connie Wimer

In addition, John “Fritz” Schwaller ’69, a resident of East Greenbush, New York, has been elected Alumni Council president for 2018–19 and will serve as an ex-officio trustee during his term. He is a professor of history at State University of New York, Albany.