RI treasurer Gina M. Raimondo elected as alumni fellow

In worldwide balloting of university graduates, Gina M. Raimondo ’98 J.D. has been elected as the new alumni fellow to the Yale Corporation.

She joins Peter B. Dervan ’72 Ph.D. and William E. Kennard ’81 J.D., the new successor trustees to the Yale Corporation. Their terms begin July 1.

Raimondo is general treasurer of the State of Rhode Island and a current Democratic candidate for governor.

“Gina is a proven leader of a complex, public sector organization and has an outstanding record of accomplishments,” said President Peter Salovey, announcing the new trustee. “We will benefit from her strategic thinking and from her experience in the design and implementation of new programs. The perspective she will bring to the Corporation’s deliberations will be invaluable, particularly as we pursue our efforts to strengthen our alliance with New Haven and the surrounding community.”

Raimondo graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University with an A.B. in economics. She attended the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, earning a doctorate in sociology. After receiving a J.D. from Yale Law School, she clerked for U.S. District Judge Kimba Wood of the Southern District of New York.

Following her clerkship, Raimondo joined Village Ventures, a venture capital firm based in Williamstown, Massachusetts and rose to the position of senior vice president of fund development before leaving to start her own business. As co-founder and general partner of Point Judith Capital, she directed investments in more than 20 companies, primarily in the health care industry.

Raimondo was elected general treasurer of Rhode Island in November 2010. Her most noted accomplishment to date is working with various stakeholders, including the Rhode Island General Assembly, to redesign Rhode Island’s state-administered public employee pension system. Under Raimondo’s leadership, Rhode Island Treasury has continued to find creative ways to invest in the state’s future and improve operations. Projects throughout her tenure include creating jobs through a municipal road and bridge revolving fund; developing financial empowerment initiatives; launching the state’s first investor relations portal that pools financial information from across state government; and expanding the Crime Victims Compensation Program to cover relocation for victims of violence.

Raimondo serves as a vice chair of the board of directors of Crossroads Rhode Island, the state’s largest homeless services organization, where she played a key role in launching a new shelter for women. She was also a trustee at Women and Infants Hospital and co-chair of its Quality Committee, and she previously served on the boards of La Salle Academy and Family Service of Rhode Island. Raimondo is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, an advisory member of Yale’s University Council, and an Aspen Institute Rodel Fellow (2011).

Raimondo received a Desjardins Financial Education Award (2013) from the Credit Union National Association in recognition of her work and promotion of financial education in schools, credit union reality fairs, financial coaching, and other financial empowerment endeavors. She has been honored with a Morris J.W. Gaebe Profile in Excellence Award (2013) from Junior Achievement of Rhode Island, and an honorary doctorate of business administration from Bryant University (2012). She was named one of the “Brave Thinkers” of 2012 by The Atlantic.

The Yale Corporation

The Yale Corporation is the governing board and policymaking body for Yale University. The 19 members are the president of the University; 10 successor trustees, who elect their own successors for up to two six-year terms; six alumni fellows, who are elected by the alumni for staggered six-year terms; and the governor and lieutenant governor of the State of Connecticut, who are ex officio members.

Brief biographical sketches of the other members of the Yale Corporation are available online: http://yale.edu/about/corporation.html