Michigan Humanities Council Adds Four to Board of Directors
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -- July 13, 2010
CONTACT: Scott Hirko, Public Relations Officer,
shirko [at] mihumanities.org, 517-372-0029 ext. 25
also in PDF
Council welcomes Chris Nern of Douglas, Jorge Chinea of Clinton Township, Maralyn O’Brien of Canton, and Shakil Khan of Lake Orion
(LANSING)-----The Michigan Humanities Council announces that four individuals recently joined its Board of Directors; three were appointed by Governor Jennifer Granholm and the other was elected by the board. The three gubernatorial appointments are Jorge Chinea of Clinton Township, Shakil Khan of Lake Orion, and Maralyn O’Brien of Canton. Chinea and Khan were appointed on May 3, 2010 and will serve until December 31, 2012; O’Brien was appointed on May 3, 2010 and will serve until December 31, 2011. Chris Nern was elected on June 17, 2010 and will serve until December 31, 2012.
Jorge L. Chinea of Clinton Township is an Associate Professor of History and the Director of the Center for Chicano-Boricua Studies at Wayne State University in Detroit. Chinea is the author of Race and Labor in the Hispanic Caribbean: The West Indian Immigrant Worker Experience in Puerto Rico, 1800-1850 (University Press of Florida, 2005) and is a frequent presenter of Latino culture and identity and Latin American history at academic conferences across the United States. He has taught nearly 20 courses on the history and culture of Latin America. Chinea earned his Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota in 1994.
Shakil A. Khan of Lake Orion is the president and director of the Multicultural Council of America, located in Troy. He is also president of the Dominican International College in Troy. Khan previously served as the president of the Multicultural Council in Windsor, Canada. His professional history includes serving as Dean of Clinical Sciences for the School of Medicine, Spartan Health Sciences University in St. Lucia, West Indies; and as Chief of Surgery for Smile Train Organization in the Dominican Republic. Khan has served as a life-long volunteer for cultural organizations, with experience in management, public relations, and fundraising.
Maralyn O’Brien of Canton Township is currently working for the Labor Program at Wellstone Action!, an organization that supports and trains activists on running for political office and campaign management. She previously worked for the State Employees International Union (SEIU) as a senior field coordinator in Washington DC, as legislative coordinator for SEIU Healthcare Michigan’s government affairs department, and as a political field organizer for SEIU’s Michigan Quality Homecare Campaign. O’Brien earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Public Policy, cum laude, from Albion College in 2005. She currently is pursuing a Master's in Urban Planning at Wayne State University.
Chris Nern of Douglas is a community activist who has experience in fundraising and serving on the board of directors for art and cultural associations. Nern is a retired Vice President and General Counsel for Detroit Edison, where he worked from 1973-2000. He was an adjunct professor of business law at Lawrence Technological University from 2003-2007 and at Madonna University and St. Mary’s College from 2001-2003. Nern’s board affiliations have included: the Saugatuck Center for the Arts, Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan-HOPE Fund, Birmingham-Bloomfield Cultural Council, Michigan Opera Theatre, and as Chief Operating Officer for the Cranbrook Academy of Art Summer Festival.
The Michigan Humanities Council's Board of Directors currently consists of 24 members whose responsibilities include program and proposal review, planning, fundraising, advocacy for the humanities, liaison to projects, and other representation of the Council at activities around the state. Five members of the Council are gubernatorial appointees while the Council Board elected 19.
The Michigan Humanities Council, founded in 1974, is an independent, non-profit organization funded in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities. For additional information, please visit: www.michiganhumanities.org or call 517-372-7770.
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