Foundation welcomes new board members for 2020/2021

The Fairmont State Foundation recently elected new officers to serve in leadership roles and welcomed three new board members. Foundation serves as the non-profit organization that solicits and administers private donations on behalf of Fairmont State University. 

Jennifer Kinty, a 1985 graduate of Fairmont State and market president for Summit Community Bank, will take over for Gary LeDonne, a 1984 graduate, as board chair. LeDonne will continue to serve on the board as past chair.  

"I am honored to serve for the next two years as the chair of the Fairmont State Foundation Board, and I am excited about the future of both Fairmont State University and the Foundation. Our new board members will bring a great deal of expertise and energy, and we're honored to have them volunteer with us," Kinty said. 

Kimberly Del Greco, who joined the board last year, will serve as the vice chair. Del Greco is a resident of Bridgeport and the deputy assistant director for the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 

Roger Stewart, president and chief executive officer of Soles Electric Company will continue to serve as treasurer for the board. 

Kim Pellillo will assume the position of secretary.  Pellillo is resident of Fairmont and is an associate agent with the Dick Moore Insurance Agency. 

The new officers will serve in their positions for two years. New board members include Jeff Gunter; Susan Harper; and Jared Rogers. 

Gunter is a 1986 graduate of Fairmont State with a bachelor’s in business administration. Gunter spent his early career in retail banking before transitioning to compliance and internal audit. He served over 10 years as an internal auditor with the Bank of Gassaway, Members Credit Union, and Wachovia Bank, N.A. 

Stepping away from auditing in 2001, Gunter joined Branch Banking & Trust (BB&T) as a financial manager responsible for corporate giving and operations of the BB&T Charitable Foundation. In 2005, he returned to auditing, serving as vice president and audit manager for BB&T’s Trust and Wealth Management lines of business and as an executive officer of the Bank of Gassaway, then as a senior management auditor at West Virginia University. Gunter has served since 2015 as vice president of audit, compliance, and risk management at Clear Mountain Bank.

Susan Harper is a 1988 graduate of Fairmont State with a bachelor’s in accounting.  She has more 30 years of experience at the Internal Revenue Service as an internal revenue agent and is also an officer of the Pennsylvania Tax Institute. She has served as a fraud technical advisor who specializes in examinations of abusive tax transactions and has instructed the Land Grant University Tax Seminars for West Virginia University, Virginia Tech, and Texas A&M.

Harper is also an AFAA Group Fitness Instructor, and winner of the 2018 Dancing with the Stars Marion County, where she and her dance partner raised a record-breaking $38,000 for United Way. In 2019, the children’s book she wrote for her daughter 20 years ago, “Maple Leaf Adventure,” was published. 

Jared Rogers is a 2008 graduate of Fairmont State University with an associate’s degree in Applied Science in Aviation Maintenance Technology.  Rogers earned his degree from Fairmont State university before jumping into the electrical contracting industry more than 10 years ago and joining the family business more than three years ago. He works as an electrical estimator for Rogers Electrical Contracting Company, Inc. and, in his spare time, enjoys tinkering with technology and building computers.

“We are very excited about our new board chair and leaders, as well as our new board member,” said Julie R. Cryser, president of the Fairmont State Foundation. “These leaders bring years of experience in both the private and public sectors, and their knowledge and expertise will be a valuable asset to the Fairmont State Foundation."