L. William Seidman
L. William Seidman, founding chair of Grand Valley's Board of Trustees, died May 13, 2009 at the age of 88. Seidman was one of the founders of Grand Valley State University, helping galvanize local support for the establishment of a public four-year university in West Michigan.
Seidman College of Business Alumni Board
The following is a listing of the Seidman College of Business Alumni Association Board.
President: Bill Smith
Co-Vice Presidents: Mark Redfield, Joel Schick, and Ryan Slusarzyk
Secretary: Nelson Van Elderen
Claudia Bajema is Director of Graduate Business Programs for the Seidman College of Business, Grand Valley State University. Prior to assuming her position with Seidman, she worked for Quiring's Statistical Consultations (QST). She earned her B.S. and MBA from Grand Valley State University.
Chris Barbee has been director of Alumni Relations at Grand Valley since August 2002. He received a BS in broadcasting from Grand Valley State University in 1988. Following graduation he worked at West Michigan Public Broadcasting where he served as a news and sports reporter for WGVU-AM/FM and as a producer-host of "GV Sports" for WGVU-WGVK-TV. From January 1994 until August 2002 he served as press secretary to Congressman Vern Ehlers of Grand Rapids.
Mark Coaster is a Senior Energy Consultant with Lakeshore Energy Services. He holds degrees from Michigan State University (Engineering) and Grand Valley State University (MBA) and his career also includes services with Michigan Consolidated Gas Company, CoEnergy Trading Company, and DTE Energy Trading.
John Grahs is the graduate student representative on the board. He has served as the IT and Operations Manager at Spartan Distributors for the past 17 years. Prior to his current position, he earned his BS in electrical engineering from Michigan Tech, and worked a brief stint in the cutting tool industry. He is on track to complete his Seidman MBA in the fall of 2013.
Vonnie Herrera serves as the Executive Director of the Seidman College of Business Alumni Association. She also serves as the Director of External Relations and Communications for the Seidman College of Business, Grand Valley State University, where she earned a BA degree.
John Huszarik is a Senior Continuous Improvement Leader and Six Sigma Black Belt at MPI Research. He is the owner of Transcription Services. He also is a 2nd degree Black Belt and certified instructor of Taekwon Do. John has a BS and MBA from GVSU.
Rabih Jamal joined DWH following completion of his MBA from Grand Valley State University and his B. S. from The University of Michigan with a degree in engineering. Mr. Jamal's business experience includes purchasing a distressed business and successfully returning it to profitability. He brings his expertise in both engineering and business to provide support to clients, and serves as a Managing Director of DWH.
Ken Kolbe is the Assistant General Manager WGVU AM/FM/TV where has has worked for 14 years. He was formerly News Director at WZZM-TV in Grand Rapids. He holds a BAA degree from Central Michigan University and a MBA from Grand Valley State University. In 2007 Ken was inducted into the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences' Silver Circle which honors broadcasting's most distinguished professionals.
Mark A. Kubik is a Partner and Director of Business Development at the Veritas Group, LLC, specializing in investment services, headquartered in Grand Rapids. Mark has worked on business projects in the United States, India, Ireland and France. He has an MBA from the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan, and a BBA from the Seidman College of Business, Grand Valley State University. He serves as an Adjunct Instructor of Marketing in the Seidman College of Business.
Eric J. Larson is a Partner at Beene Garter LLP. Mr. Larson’s practice is focused on business valuation and litigation support. He has worked with hundreds of closely-held companies and their representatives in numbers areas such as succession planning, gift and estate tax, ESOPS, mergers and acquisitions, and commercial and civil litigation. He has earned BS and MBA degrees from Grand Valley State University.
Amy Lodenstein is the Nurse Manager of the Bariatrics program at Spectrum Health since 2009. She is direct manager of 50 staff members. Amy is also an Adjunct Professor for the Department of Allied Health Sciences at GVSU. She holds a BSN degree from Hope College and an MSN/MBA from Grand Valley State University. Amy volunteers with the Special Olympics.
Mark S. Redfield is the principal of Redfield Financial Group. He is also the Vice President and partner of the Wealth Advisory Group and serves on the INVEST Advisory Council. Mark holds a Chartered Financial Consultant designation and is a Registered Investment Advisor. Mark currently serves on the Seidman Alumni Board and Finance Advisory Board. He earned a BBA from the Seidman College of Business.
Sharron Reynolds is retired from Huntington Bank, where she was Vice President of Community Relations. She has a long history of community service and is currently a member of several area Boards and committees, serving the arts and human service efforts. Awards include Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce Athena, "Y" Tribute for Community Service, and Association of Fundraising Professionals Philanthropy Volunteer of the Year. She earned her MBA degree from the Seidman College of Business.
Joel Schick is a Sales Forecast & Demand Planning Analyst with X-Rite Inc. in Grand Rapids, a $200 million global color technology company. Prior to his current role, he worked at Mercantile Bank as a Senior Credit Analyst after graduating from Hope College with his undergraduate degree. He earned his MBA from the Seidman College of Business.
Scott Setlock (BBA in Finance & Business Economics ’04, MBA ‘10) is an Assistant Vice President and Commercial Credit Manager at Mercantile Bank of Michigan. Scott is an active GVSU contributor, maintaining roles with the Seidman Alumni Board and the Finance Department Advisory Board, while teaching an undergraduate Bank Management class as an adjunct professor.
Ryan Slusarzyk (BBA in Marketing and Management, ‘08) is the Corporate Business Travel Manager for the Amway Hotel Corporation. Ryan continues to be very active in the community, and is involved with many organizations, including: the American Cancer Society Young Leaders Council, Habitat 4 Humanity, and Grand Rapids Young Professionals.
Miles Smith is serving as the undergraduate representative on the board. He is a senior business student at GVSU and is currently serving as President of The GVSU Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization (CEO). In the past two years he has experienced success winning business plan competitions and commercializing products for his company BAHRS, LLC.
William Smith is the Owner of CompuCraft, Inc, GoWest Properties, and AAA Flow Inc. His degrees include a BBA in Marketing, and a MBA in Finance, and he has been a regular Adjunct Instructor for GVSU for over 20 years. He was honored as an Outstanding Entrepreneur by the Seidman College of Business.
Paul Spindler CPA, CMA, CFE, is Vice President/Treasurer and part owner of Baker Spindler Holtz, P.C. a local CPA Firm in Grand Rapids. Paul has a BBA from GVSU. Prior to working with Baker Spindler Holtz he worked with a National CPA Firm.
Susan A. Stoddard is the Vice-President of Finance and Operations for the Heart of West Michigan United Way. She earned her BA at Hope College, her MBA at Grand Valley and is a CPA. She also has extensive experience in healthcare and the tax/business advisory side of public accounting.
Michael D. Stornant is a vice President of Corporate Finance at Wolverine World Wide. He has been with the company 16 years serving in various operations and financial positions throughout his tenure. Before Wolverine World Wide, Stornant served on the Audit and Compliance team at Ernst and Young LLP. He graduated from GVSU in 1988 with a BS in Accounting.
Nelson Van Elderen is currently a visiting instructor of Marketing in the Seidman College of Business. Previously he worked in the lumber and building materials industry for 31 years in various capacities and retired as Director of Marketing for The Standard Companies in 2008. Nelson has been involved with the Seidman Alumni Board since its inception and received his BBA(1976) and MBA(1994) from Seidman.
Kathleen Vogelsang (BBA ’95, MBA ’99) is the Chief Investment Officer at the Van Andel Institute. Her career includes 15 years of investment management for both institutions and private wealth. She holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation from the CFA Institute.
Carol Vriend Petter (MBA ’00) is a Vice President at Huntington Bank responsible for risk, compliance and training in Retirement Plan Services. She graduated from Calvin College and subsequently earned designations both as a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Financial Planner. Throughout her career, she has served in many capacities in the retirement plan arena.
Steve Zlotnicki, CTP, is the Corporate Treasury Manager for Spectrum Health System. He received his bachelor’s degree from the Seidman College of Business in 1993. Steve is a military veteran, having served 8 years in the United States Air Force. While in the service, Steve obtained his Avionic Engineering degree from the University of Maryland (European Division) in 1984.
For more on Alumni at GVSU click here—GVSU Alumni & Visitors
Page last modified January 24, 2013
