WASHINGTON, April 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Blackboard Inc. (Nasdaq:
BBBB) announced today that it has expanded the number of directors
permitted to serve on the board to nine people and appointed Joseph L.
Cowan, Thomas Kalinske and Beth Kaplan, to the company's Board of
Directors.
"Today, we have enhanced our board of directors significantly with the
addition of three executives with significant operational and financial
expertise," said Matthew Pittinsky, chairman and co-founder of Blackboard
Inc. "I am pleased to welcome Joe, Tom and Beth to the board."
E. Rogers Novak, managing member of Novak Biddle Venture Partners and
chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee of the Blackboard board
of directors, said, "The board and Blackboard management identified areas
of expertise and qualifications that would improve our effectiveness, and
made it a priority to add directors with strong financial and general
management, especially from the software and education industries. Our new
directors are very accomplished individuals with the highest integrity.
They will provide Blackboard's senior management team with additional
resources to assist in shaping and executing the company's strategy."
New Board Member Profiles
Joseph L. Cowan
Joseph L. Cowan brings to Blackboard a proven track record of working
with enterprise software companies with broad product portfolios and global
operations. Mr. Cowan currently serves as chief executive officer of
Interwoven (Nasdaq: IWOV). Recently, Cowan served as chief executive
officer of Manugistics Group, Inc. a leading global provider of demand and
supply chain management solutions. Prior to joining Manugistics, Cowan was
president and chief executive officer at EXE Technologies. Previously,
Cowan has also held management positions at Invensys, Texas Instruments,
Eurotherm Corp and Monsanto. Mr. Cowan received a MS in electrical
engineering from Arizona State University and holds a BS in electrical
engineering from Auburn University.
Thomas Kalinske
Thomas Kalinske currently serves as vice chairman of the board of
Leapfrog Enterprises Inc. (NYSE: LF) and has served as a director of
Leapfrog since 1997. From September 1997 to July 2006, Mr. Kalinske served
as CEO of Leapfrog and was the Chairman of the board of directors of
Leapfrog from September 1997 to February 2004. Mr. Kalinske served as the
president of Knowledge Universe LLC (now renamed Krest LLC) , a private
company focused on building leading companies in areas relating to
education, technology and career management and the improvement of
individual and corporate performance. From 1990 to 1996, he served as
president and chief executive officer of Sega of America. From 1987 to
1990, he was president and chief executive officer of the Universal
Matchbox Group. From 1985 to 1987, he served as president and co-chief
executive officer of Mattel, Inc. Mr. Kalinske served in other senior
management positions at Mattel from 1972 to 1985. Mr. Kalinske is a past
board member of the National Education Association Foundation for the
Improvement of Education and of the RAND Education Board. Mr. Kalinske
received a BS degree from the University of Wisconsin and a MBA degree from
the University of Arizona.
Beth Kaplan
Beth Kaplan heads Axcel Partners, a Baltimore-based venture capital
firm she helped found in 2001. Ms. Kaplan has been responsible for brand
management and marketing for several of the nation's leading retailers and
consumer products during her career. She was executive vice president and
general manager for Bath & Body Works, a division of Limited Brands, where
she pioneered the development of 64 beauty specialty stores. She also
served as senior executive vice president of marketing and merchandising at
Rite Aid Drugstores. Between 1994 and 1996, she was president and general
manager of Noxell, the cosmetics division of Procter & Gamble that included
the Cover Girl and Max Factor brands. She also served as a general manager
of several brands under the Procter & Gamble food division. Kaplan holds an
undergraduate degree in economics and an MBA from The Wharton School at the
University of Pennsylvania where she is a member of the board of overseers.
Ms. Kaplan previously served as a director of Blackboard from July 2000 to
August 2001.
Other Blackboard board members, including Matthew Pittinsky, chairman
of Blackboard Inc.; Michael L. Chasen, president and chief executive
officer of Blackboard Inc.; Frank R. Gatti, chief financial officer of
Educational Testing Service; E. Rogers Novak, co-founder of Novak Biddle
Venture Partners; William Raduchel; and Dr. Arthur Levine, president of The
Woodrow Wilson Foundation.
About Blackboard Inc.
Blackboard Inc. is a leading provider of enterprise software
applications and related services to the education industry. Founded in
1997, Blackboard enables educational innovations everywhere by connecting
people and technology. Millions of people use Blackboard everyday at
academic institutions around the globe, including colleges, universities,
K-12 schools and other education providers, as well as textbook publishers
and student- focused merchants that serve education providers and their
students. Blackboard is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices in
North America, Europe, Australia and Asia.
Blackboard
Educate. Innovate. Everywhere.(TM)
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