Who We are

Wilt Alston (E’81, P’13) is a Transportation Safety Consultant with over 30 years of experience in design, development, verification, and validation of industrial software-based systems. Wilt was a member of Duke University’s Board of Trustees from 2002-2004. He is a runner, a biker, husband, and dad.

Fouad Bashour (T’98) is a founding partner of CIC Partners and has been with CIC and its predecessor since 1999. CIC Partners is a private equity firm that invests in growth-oriented middle market companies primarily in the food and restaurant industries. CIC manages the personal capital of its investment team and operating partners, who are successful CEOs and entrepreneurs, and seeks to partner with owner/operators, founders, and management teams. He began his career at The Boston Consulting Group. He is a former trustee of the Alcuin School in Dallas, TX and previously served on the Duke Annual Fund Advisory Board. He lives in Dallas, Texas with his wife Dr. Jennifer Bashour and their two children.

Catherine Forster Connolly is the owner and CEO of Merida,—an American textile design house based in Fall River, MA. Catherine has been the CEO of Merida for 15 years and purchased the company seven years ago. During her tenure, Catherine has led the transformation of the company from an importer of high-end sisal to a design-driven textile company reimagining textile manufacturing in the United States. Prior to Merida, Catherine ran a market research company, Pyramid Research, in the high-tech space for 6 years and worked as head of Research and as an analyst for six years prior to taking over the company’s leadership. Catherine got her MA in International Relations and Economics from Johns Hopkins School for Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in 1995 and graduated with an AB in Comparative Area Studies from Duke University in 1991. Catherine lives in Newton, MA with her husband and her three children.

Daniel W. Drake is the president of the William R. Kenan, Jr. Funds, and chairman of the William R. Kenan, Jr. Fund for Engineering, Technology and Science. From 1967-1998, Dan served as managing director of J.P. Morgan & Co. and continued to consult with the firm until 1999. Dan also served as managing member and chief operating officer of Middlebury Capital Partners LLC from 1999-2001. From 2003-2009, he was the associate publisher of the Nantucket Independent LLC. Dan is currently involved on the boards of a number of nonprofit organizations, including the Linda Loring Nature Foundation and the Nantucket Shellfish Association, serving as president for both organizations. Dan received a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Rochester in 1964 and his J.D. from the Albany Law School of Union University in 1967. Dan was admitted to the New York Bar in 1967. He and his wife Judith reside in Nantucket, Massachusetts.

Kristen Farrell is an accomplished businesswoman and designer who has been in the luxury home and hospitality industries for over 25 years. She has built a vast portfolio of successful projects in the construction and design fields, including over 250 houses in the Hamptons and a variety of other ventures under the Farrell brand. Her keen knowledge of Hamptons real estate and design acumen have earned her a reputation as a respected industry leader. Kristen has recently expanded the Farrell brand to include the Farrell Design Group, making an imprint in the NYC and Boston hospitality sectors.

Kristen is also a mother of three – Joey, an integrated design student at The New School; Kate, Duke P’26; and Jack, a senior in Southampton High School.

Jennifer Hainsfurther Saperstein (T’05) is a partner in the Washington DC office of Covington & Burling LLP, where she serves as vice chair of the Anti-Corruption Group and a Managing Partner for Legal Personnel.  Jennifer's practice focuses on advising clients on compliance issues arising under anti-corruption laws, including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act ("FCPA").  Jennifer also leads cross-cutting compliance projects to help companies build and improve their compliance programs across areas of regulatory expertise, and conducts internal investigations on issues related to workplace culture, diversity, and inclusion.  Jennifer was recognized by Law360 as a 2020 "Rising Star" in Compliance.

Scott Hayward (P' 22, P' 25, P' 25) is the Chief Executive Officer, member of the Board of Directors, and Partner of GMO, a global investment management firm headquartered in Boston. Prior to joining GMO in 2017, Scott served as the CEO and Chairman of Quantitative Management Associates (QMA) for 11 years. Previously, he was Head of Client Relations at QMA and Jennison Associates (both affiliates of Prudential Financial, Inc.). Prior to joining Prudential in 2003, Scott was a Managing Director at J.P. Morgan, where he spent 16 years in a variety of roles in investment management, the investment bank, the private bank, and corporate functions. In addition to various corporate boards, Scott has served as the President of the Board of the Reeves-Reed Arboretum and Head of Strategy for the Board of Newark Academy, and he currently serves on the Board of Regents for Boston College and the Executive Advisory Board of Give to the World.

Danielle Moore (T’85) earned her A.B. in history. At Duke, Ms. Moore served on the DukeEngage Advisory Board, the Leadership Gifts Committee, and as co-chair of her 30^th reunion.  Ms. Moore currently serves as president of the Palm Beach Town Council.  She is president of the Mary Alice Fortin Foundation, vice president of Fortin Enterprises, Inc. and a director of both the Fortin Foundation of Florida and the Barker Welfare Foundation.  Ms. Moore sits on the boards of many charitable organizations including The Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach, the Boys and Girls Club of Palm Beach County, Rosarian Academy (where she attended and her daughters currently go to school), Town of Palm Beach United Way, the Garden Club of Palm Beach, and Women’s Southern Golf Association.

Vincent Price (chair, ex officio) is the President of Duke University and the Walter Hines Page Professor of Public Policy and Political Science. A leading global expert on public opinion, social influence, and political communication, Price came to Duke in 2017. As president, he also oversees Duke Health and one of the most successful collegiate athletics programs in the nation. Price previously served as Provost of the University of Pennsylvania and Professor of Political Science in the School of Arts and Sciences. Previously, he was at the University of Michigan as Chair of the Department of Communication Studies. He is a member of The National Humanities Center Board of Trustees. Price earned his PhD (1987) and MA (1985) in Communication from Stanford University and a BA magna cum laude (1979) in English from the University Honors Program at Santa Clara University.

The Honorable Rodolfo (“Rudy”) Ruiz II (T’02) is a United States District Court Judge for the Southern District of Florida.  Prior to his confirmation to the federal bench, he was a Circuit Court Judge for the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida from 2014 through 2019, and a Miami-Dade County Court Judge from 2012 through 2014.  Before entering judicial service, Judge Ruiz was an Assistant County Attorney with the Miami-Dade County Attorney’s Office, where he represented Miami-Dade County and government employees in federal and state court at both trial and appellate levels.  Judge Ruiz was also an associate with White & Case L.L.P., where he specialized in mergers and acquisitions, asset-backed financings, and general corporate matters.

Craig Saperstein (T’95) is a partner at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP. He assists clients in developing and implementing sophisticated government relations strategies at the federal and state levels that are geared to provide a demonstrable return on investment. Craig lobbies on behalf of corporate, nonprofit, foreign sovereign, and public sector clients in Congress, the Executive Branch, and state and local governments. He represents clients on a variety of policy issues, including financial services, cybersecurity, international trade, veterans, energy, economic development, transportation, and health care matters.

Rahul Vinnakota (T’00) is a Managing Director of H.I.G. Capital. He currently serves as a Board Member/Lead Director for United Flow Technologies, BHC, and Supply Source Enterprises. Rahul holds an A.B. in Economics from Duke and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School. He served as a member of the Duke Annual Fund Executive Committee and as co-chair of his 5th, 10th, and 15th class reunions. Mr. Vinnakota lives in New York City with his wife and two children.

Priya Virmani Rajparia is the owner and founder of Privee by Priya - a personal styling company based in Short Hills, NJ.  Priya founded the business in 2017.  Since starting the business, Priya has helped elevate the style of many C suite executives.  She firmly believes that style is a key element in executive presence and lends to self confidence and success.  Priya is also employed as a stylist by the prestigious Mall at Short Hills.  Prior to starting this business, Priya has worked in financial services for 10+ years.  She has an MBA from Case Western University.  Priya has spent 5 years in Paris with her husband and 2 girls.  She is an avid reader, home chef, traveler, and mah jongg player!

Brian Weinstein (T’94) is a partner in the Litigation Department at the law firm of Davis, Polk & Wardwell, LLP.  As part of his pro bono work at the firm, Mr. Weinstein was part of the team that secured a multi-million-dollar judgment in favor of Chinese immigrants working in the restaurant industry who had been paid less than the minimum wage by their employer.   Mr. Weinstein was an Angier B. Duke Scholar and holds a B.A. in English from Duke, as well as a J.D. from Yale University.  He is currently serving as the co-chair for the 25^th Reunion of his class at Duke. Mr. Weinstein lives in Briarcliff Manor, New York with his wife and three children.

Sara Barron Zablotney (T’99) is a Partner in the New York office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. She focuses her practice on the tax aspects of mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures and spin-offs, both domestic and cross-border. She also advises clients on the tax aspects of securities issuances, bankruptcy and restructuring, and investment fund formation. Sara was recognized as a 2014 “Rising Star” by Law360 for Tax Law, is listed in The Legal 500 U.S., and is listed as a “Recognized Practitioner” in the Chambers USA 2017 edition.