[Not a valid template]Navient re-elects board members
Navient held its 2017 Annual Meeting of Shareholders in Wilmington, Del. Shareholders voted to reelect the 11 nominees to serve as directors for one-year terms.
The directors are Chairman William M. Diefenderfer III, John K. Adams, Jr., Anna Escobedo Cabral, Diane Suitt Gilleland, Katherine A. Lehman, Linda A. Mills, John (Jack) F. Remondi, Jane J. Thompson, Laura S. Unger, Barry L. Williams and David L. Yowan.
Six of the 11 directors are women, representing 55 percent of the company’s board. Navient is distinguished as among the few S&P 500 companies with a majority women board. These women directors are among a board with diversity of industry backgrounds, ethnicity, age, skills and experiences. The company has attracted nationwide recognition for gender parity on its board from 2020 Women on Boards, the Women’s Forum of New York and the New York Stock Exchange Governance Services.
As planned, long-time Director Barry A. Munitz retired at the annual meeting. Chancellor emeritus of California State University, Los Angeles, Dr. Munitz played an integral role in the creation of Navient. He was previously chair of California P-16 Council and president and chief executive officer of The J. Paul Getty Trust.
Ten of the 11 board members are independent of Navient, which is consistent with the requirement in the company’s governance guidelines that a substantial majority be independent.
Represented by proxy or present in person at the meeting were 91 percent of the company’s total shares outstanding.
Emerging Enterprise Center names program director
The Emerging Enterprise Center announced Dora Cheatham as the new Program Director. She has had a long career focused on sales, marketing and product development in a corporate setting. For the past several years, she has run her own consulting shop focused on assisting small businesses here in Delaware and throughout the region. She has also been a key player in organizational and promotional work for the Delaware Sustainable Chemistry Alliance.
Cheatham was born in the UK and grew up in Europe, studying and/or working in the UK, France, Spain and Cyprus regions. She holds degrees in foreign languages and business from Thames Valley University and the University of London and speaks fluent Spanish, French and Greek.
She relocated to Delaware 25 years ago and has since held several positions in International Business Development and Marketing, most recently as International Business Development Manager with Celeste Industries Corp-a subsidiary of ITW, Inc.
She implemented and managed new product development & marketing procedures to create and commercialize new products on the global stage, generating over $5 million in new business and helping to establish Celeste Industries as a leader in aviation industry cleaning chemicals.
On a local level, she has also worked as Director of Development at Kent-Sussex Industries, Milford, Delaware, where she coordinated a $2.2 million capital campaign and successfully increased non-campaign donations.
Bluecoast announces staff
The new Bluecoast Seafood Grill & Raw Bar, which is scheduled to open in early June on Route 1 in Rehoboth Beach, has been built from the ground up.
Doug Ruley, vice president of SoDel Concepts, is the executive chef. Jason Dietterick and Scott Viselli are also opening chefs, while Ryan Blakeman and Mike Deller are the sous chefs. Jasmine Rubio will bring her prep experience and the cold side from the flagship Bluecoast in Bethany Beach to the new restaurant.
Ruley, who graduated at the top of his class at Johnson and Wales University in Rhode Island, has more than 20 years of experience, including 10 years at Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant. He started working for SoDel Concepts in 2006, and he’s been the opening chef at four SoDel Concepts restaurants: Lupo Italian Kitchen, the two Papa Grande’s Coastal Taqueria locations (Fenwick Island and Rehoboth Beach) and Catch 54 in Fenwick Island.
Jason Dietterick, who started with SoDel Concepts in 2004 as the opening chef at NorthEast Seafood Kitchen in Ocean View, has worked in Philadelphia at famed restaurateur Stephen Starr’s establishments. Known for his creativity, he’s been the chef at the award-winning Bluecoast Seafood Grill in Bethany Beach, and he’s currently working alongside Chef Alex Martinez at NorthEast Seafood Kitchen.
Scott Viselli, who owned a seafood market and restaurant in Virginia before moving to Delaware, was formerly the executive chef at Papa Grande’s Coastal Taqueria in Fenwick Beach. He’s been the sous chef at Bluecoast in Bethany Beach since last summer.
Mike Deller has extensive experience in banquet and hotel food service management. He’s interested in culinary education and training, which makes him an asset in such a rapidly growing company, Ruley said.
Ryan Blakeman has been a member of the SoDel Concepts team for more than three years. He’s worked closely with Chef Chris Parks at Lupo Italian Kitchen in Rehoboth Beach. Jasmine Rubio has worked at the flagship Bluecoast for more than 10 years.
The 250-seat, 4,500-square-foot restaurant will have an outdoor area with firepits, corn hole games and an acoustic stage. The restaurant will employ more than 100 year-round jobs to the Delaware coast.
The Clubhouse at Baywood announces chef, manager
Danielle Panarello, director of operations for The Clubhouse at Baywood, located in Baywood Greens, recently announced the appointment of Lisa Chambers to the position of general manager and Tom Deptula to executive chef. Both have extensive experience in hospitality industry.
Chambers, a Delaware native who started her hospitality career at age 16, has worked in some of the area’s finest establishments. The University of Delaware graduate is equally known for her art, which has been exhibited in Rehoboth Beach. She is an art docent at Richard A. Shields Elementary School in Lewes.
Deptula, also a native Delawarean, has been cooking for more than 20 years. The University of Delaware graduate, who earned a degree in philosophy, has worked his way up from sweeping floors to leading the kitchens in some of the most celebrated restaurants in the resort area. Meanwhile, he traveled extensively, and his experiences have given him an appreciation for a variety of cuisines. Making charcuterie is a passion.
Parks joins Wye Financial & Trust
Wye Financial & Trust, a division of Shore United Bank and a member of Shore Bancshares community of companies, has announced that Christopher Parks has joined the company as a LPL Financial Advisor. Parks will be responsible for delivering comprehensive strategies to help clients work towards their long-term financial goals.
Parks holds a Series 7 and 65 Securities License held through LPL Financial and a Maryland Life and Health insurance license. He is a Graduate of Salisbury University and holds a bachelor’s degree in Applied Mathematics. Prior to joining Wye Financial & Trust, Parks helped clients with retirement planning, investment and annuity strategies and small business management.
