Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced the appointment of four new members to the Board of Visitors June 20 — James Donovan, Class of 1982 alumnus John F. Harris, Class of 1972 and 1974 alumnus H. Eugene Lockhart and Class of 1990 alumna Calvert Saunders Moore. The appointees began their terms Tuesday, officially marking the beginning of an entirely Youngkin-appointed Board.
These four appointees enter the Board following University President Jim Ryan’s resignation and will be part of the Board which selects an interim president and conducts a national search for a new president. They took their positions July 1, after the terms of Rector Robert Hardie, Vice Rector Carlos Brown, Robert Blue and L.F. Payne concluded Monday.
Donovan currently serves as vice chairman of global client coverage at Goldman Sachs and is an adjunct professor at the School of Law. He earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering and a Master’s in business administration from Massachusetts Institute of Technology before earning his law degree from Harvard Law School. Donovan has worked at Goldman Sachs since his graduation from Harvard in 1993 and served as a member of the Presidential Intelligence Advisory Board during President Donald Trump’s first term.
Throughout his career, Donovan has donated over $950,000 to Republican candidates and committees, including two donations totaling nearly $200,000 to the Republican National Committee in 2016.
Harris formerly worked as managing director and chief financial officer for The Carlyle Group, a global investment firm, until 2007. He is currently a writer and executive producer for the Virginia Film Festival and formerly served on the board for the University’s Alumni Association. He earned a degree from the McIntire School of Commerce in 1982. Since 2020, Harris has donated a total of over $70,000 to Youngkin campaigns.
Lockhart currently serves on the board of directors at Huron Consulting Group, a management consulting group specializing in healthcare, commercial and higher education industries. He formerly worked as chief executive officer and president of Mastercard and founded MissionOG, a venture capital firm based in Philadelphia. Lockhart earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University and earned a Master’s in business administration from the Darden School of Business.
Moore is currently president of Ivor & Co. LLC, a private family investment firm founded by her father, Thomas Saunders. She graduated from the College of Arts and Science in 1990 and in 2021, joined her parents in making a $10 million donation to the Jefferson Scholars Foundation. Moore has donated a total of more than $130,000 to Republican candidates and committees.
The 17 members of the Board are appointed by the governor and are subject to approval by the Virginia General Assembly. Members serve four year terms and can be reappointed for one consecutive term, but may be removed by the governor at any time for malfeasance, misfeasance, incompetence or gross neglect of duty.
Donovan, Harris, Lockhart and Moore have yet to be confirmed by the General Assembly.
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