Effective Jan. 1, five new members have been appointed to the University’s Board of Trustees. Christopher J. Maguire ‘89 CLAS, Alfonso Martinez-Fonts Jr. ‘71 CLAS, Robert F. Moran ‘72 VSB, Diane P. Rowen ‘86 CLAS and Siran H. Sahakian joined the 36-member Board. 

University President Rev. Peter M. Donohue, O.S.A., Ph.D praised their arrival, stating, “Once again, we have an impressive group of alumni and parents joining the Villanova University Board of Trustees. I look forward to working with [the trustees] to ensure that Villanova continues to deliver on our Augustinian Catholic mission, while always looking towards the future and what is best for the Villanova community.”

An alumnus of CLAS, Maguire earned his BA in English in ‘89 and has previously served as a member of the Villanova President’s Advisory Council. He is the founder and President of 1251 Capital Group, a financial services holding company focused on the asset management and insurance sectors with offices across the East Coast and in Canada. Maguire is also a partner in his real estate fund and holds several other positions, currently serving as Chairman of the Cobbs Creek Restoration and Community Foundation and on the boards of the Maguire Foundation and Caron Treatment Centers. 

Martinez-Fonts Jr. is a fellow alumnus of CLAS, earning his BA in Political Science in ‘71. Born in Havana, Cuba, Martinez-Fonts spent 30 years in the banking field, serving as Chairman and CEO, as well as President, of JP Morgan Chase in Texas. He has held positions such as Assistant Secretary and Special Assistant to the Secretary for the Private Sector at the Department of Homeland Security and Executive Vice President of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation in Washington, D.C. He now lives and works as a farmer. 

Moran graduated in ‘72 with a BS in Business Administration and has continued to support numerous initiatives across campus, like VSB, as well as the Villanova Track and Field program. He currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of UNATION, Inc., an event-based technology company. He has held executive leadership positions for several major companies in the U.S., such as GNC Holdings Inc. and PetSmart, Inc. In 2011 and 2012, he was named to Fortune Magazine’s list of the Top 50 People in Business. Moran is a member of the board of directors of The Fressnapf Group, as well as Hanesbrands, Inc., and the U.S. Track & Field Foundation. 

Rowen, whose philanthropy pioneered  our very own “Rowen Campus Green,”, graduated from CLAS in 1986 with a BA in Communication. Rowen and her family have provided scholarships and bolstered STEM education at 18 Catholic institutions in Philadelphia, New York and New Jersey, including the University. In 2013, Rowen was honored with the St. Catherine of Siena Award from St. Agnes Cathedral School in her home parish of St. Agnes Cathedral in recognition of her commitment to Catholic education. Two of her children, son James ’16 VSB and daughter Megan ’20 CLAS, are also Villanova graduates. 

Sahakian is Vice President of her family’s foundation, The Hirair and Anna Hovnanian Foundation, which provides support to charitable causes relating to Armenian culture and education. She serves on the boards of the Rumson Country Day School and the Riverview Medical Center Foundation. She previously served on the board of 180 Turning Lives Around, an organization dedicated to ending domestic and sexual violence, as well as the boards of the Monmouth Medical Center Foundation and the Peddie School (N.J.). She is the daughter of Hirair Hovnanian ‘56 COE, as well as the mother of two Villanova graduates and one current VSB senior.