Widener University Appoints Five to Board of Trustees
The Widener University Board of Trustees recently named five new members to its ranks
including senior officials at Affinity Health Plan, People 2.0, the Alliance for Higher
Education and Democracy, and the law firm of Page, Wolfberg & Wirth.
The Board of Trustees is charged with ensuring that Widener upholds its mission as
a metropolitan university, serves as a bridge between the university and society and
holds in trust the intellectual, physical and financial assets of the institution.
Claire M. DeMatteis, the senior vice president, general counsel, chief compliance
officer and corporate secretary for Affinity Health Plan; Glenn Eckard, vice president
for business development for People 2.0 in West Chester; Matthew Hartley, executive
director of the Alliance for Higher Education and Democracy (AHEAD) and professor
at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education ; Douglas M. Wolfberg,
a founding member of the Mechanicsburg, Pa. law firm of Page, Wolfberg & Wirth; and
Samantha Krupa, a student in the physical therapy doctoral program at Widener; were
elected to the board at its May meeting.
“Widener is extremely pleased to welcome such highly qualified members to an already
strong Board of Trustees,” said Widener President Julie E. Wollman. “We look forward
to their service and wise counsel to the board.”
DeMatteis has more than 25 years of legal, executive and legislative management experience
spanning corporate, government and non-profit work. Before joining Affinity in 2013,
she was executive vice president, general counsel, corporate secretary and chief privacy
officer of Catalina Marketing in St. Petersburg, Fla. A 1992 graduate of the Widener
University Delaware Law School, she served for 10 years as senior counsel to then
Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr., coordinating public policy positions and activities and
managing all corporate and legal matters.
Eckard, a resident of Springfield, Pa., was named to the board of trustees as the
incoming president of the Widener University-Pennsylvania Military College Alumni
Association. A 1991 graduate of Widener with a bachelor’s degree in English, Eckard
assumed his current position at People 2.0 in April. Previously, he was chief operating
officer with Eminent Group in Horsham, Pa., and is the former co-founder and COO for
Rapid Learning Institute in Eddystone, Pa.
Hartley, a resident of Media, Pa., is executive director of AHEAD and professor of
education for the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education. AHEAD seeks
to promote and support education policy and practice that fosters open, equitable
and democratic societies by providing research to international policy stakeholders.
He currently serves on the advisory board of the Netter Center for Community Partnerships,
which named his a distinguished fellow in 2014. His research explores the civic responsibilities
of universities and their roles as anchor institutions in their communities.
Wolfberg, a 1996 graduate of the Widener University Commonwealth Law School, is a
founding member of Page, Wolfberg & Wirth, which specializes in the emergency medical
services, ambulance and public safety industries. He is also a co-founder of the National
Academy of Ambulance Compliance. Wolfberg serves on the Board of Advisors for the
Commonwealth Law School, and has served as an adjunct professor at the law school
for more than a decade.
Krupa, a resident of Union, N.J., was named to the board as a student. She graduated
from Widener in May with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, and is currently enrolled
in the physical therapy doctoral program at Widener. Krupa completed a physical therapy
internship in fall 2015 at Nova Care Rehabilitation in Swarthmore, Pa. A Dean’s List
student, Krupa was also involved in several activities including Alternative Spring
Break, Women’s Rugby, and serving as a Crew Leader and PRIDE Mentor.
Widener University is a private, metropolitan university that connects curricula to
social issues through civic engagement. Dynamic teaching, active scholarship, personal
attention, leadership development and experiential learning are key components of
the Widener experience. A comprehensive doctorate-granting university, Widener comprises
eight schools and colleges that offer liberal arts and sciences, professional and
pre-professional curricula leading to associate’s, baccalaureate, master’s and doctoral
degrees. The university’s campuses in Chester and Harrisburg, Pa., and Wilmington,
Del., are proud to be tobacco free. Visit the university website, www.widener.edu.
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