|
Basque Center
Advisory Board
Meeting of Feb. 2002
|
|
Advisory Board Members
Honorary Members of the Board:
Frank Gehry
Born in Toronto, Frank Owen Gehry is one of the most inventive and
pioneering architects working today. Based in Los Angeles, where he
relocated with his family in 1947, he has developed a unique
architectural style that reflects both the urban vernacular and his
long association with contemporary artists. He received his
undergraduate degree in architecture from the University of Southern
California and in the years immediately following, worked in a number
of firms including Victor Gruen Associates and Pereira and Luckman
Associates.
After brief studies in urban planning at Harvard University’s Graduate
School of Design and a year in Paris working for André Rémondet,
Gehry returned to California and opened a small office in Santa Monica
in 1962. The scope of his work has grown to include exhibition design,
furniture, libraries, office buildings, restaurants, schools, and
visual and performing arts venues.
The award of the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 1989 brought increased
recognition, and the years following have been among the most
productive and rewarding of Gehry’s career. The introduction of
sophisticated computer software in the early 1990s has facilitated the
construction and engineering of complex building systems and
successfully translated the gestural quality of his work from model to
built form. Frank O. Gehry & Associates has grown to over 140
employees, and the firm’s work is now featured in the Czech Republic,
France, Germany, Japan, Scotland, Spain, Switzerland, and the United
States. Gehry’s apotheosis came about with his masterpiece Guggenheim
Bilbao Museum, considered the most emblematic building of the turn of
the century.
Juan Zelaia Letamendi
Juan Zelaia Letamendi has been President of
Kulturaren Aldeko Euskal Fundazioa since
its creation in 1994. Born in Oñati, Gipuzkoa, he received a Doctorate
in Industrial Engineering from Bilbao’s School of Engineering in 1947.
The battery company Cegasa, founded in 1934 thanks
to the technical inspiration of a Basque-Chilean relative, was the family starting point
from which he developed his later industrial initiatives.
Tuboplast Hispania (plastic packaging for
cosmetics, chemists, etc: Vitoria-Gasteiz
and Vichy, 1964) and Hidronor (recuperation, treatment and
management of industrial
waste, 1973), complete the trilogy of companies closest to his
management, along with Cegasa. Mr. Zelaia is Executive President of the
three, and actively participates in industries in other sectors, such
as food and drink, commercialization, cartridges etc.
The industrial activities of Mr. Zelaia go beyond the
Basque Country, reaching Spain, France, England, Portugal, the U.S.A.,
Chile, Argentina, Mexico, and other countries. Ever concerned about the
social and cultural dimensions of life, he always supports initiatives
in Basque culture, such as ikastolas (schools taught in the
Basque language), UZEI (terminology center) the Tximist Expedition to
Everest, sports, etc. Linked personally by family to the Basque
American diaspora, he has always encouraged the meeting of both Basque
Countries (the one on European soil and the one found throughout the
world). As promoter and President of K.A. Euskal Fundazioa, he directs
this project as a cultural meeting place for all Basques.
Advisory Board Members:
Anita Anacabe-Franzoia
Anita Anacabe is owner-operator of Anacabe’s Elko General Merchandise and
is part-time faculty at Great
Basin College in Elko, Nevada, teaching Spanish and Basque. She has been a
past GBC Foundation member and current Nursing Advisory Board Member. She
is a graduate of Boise State University.
Michonne R. Ascuaga
Michonne Ascuaga is Chief Executive Officer of John
Ascuaga’s Nugget Hotel and Casino, Sparks, Nevada. She is a graduate of
Santa Clara University in Santa Clara, California, and earned an MBA
degree from Stanford University. She sits on several boards, including the
Santa Clara University Board of Regents, Sierra Arts Foundation, Nevada
Women’s Fund, and the Forum for a Common Agenda.
Michael J. Bidart
Michael J. Bidart is a name partner of Shernoff
Bidart & Darras, and leads the firm’s HMO and Property and Casualty
Departments. A prominent consumer attorney with more than 25 years of
experience representing individual and business consumers, he is a
frequent lecturer and keynote speaker on HMO litigation and bad faith
insurance practices. He received his B.S. degree from California State
Polytechnic University, Pomona and his J.D. from Pepperdine University.
José
Antonio Campos Granados
José Antonio (Tontxu) Campos
grew up in Barrakaldo (Bizkaia), in the Basque Country. He has a degree
in Economics, an MBA, and a Ph.D in business from Deusto University.
He is currently the
Basque State Minister of Education, Universities and Research in the
autonomous Basque Government. He also served as a councilor for
Innovation and Economic Development in the regional government of
Bizkaia, and as Director of Housing and Environment for the Basque
Government.
José Ramón Cengotitabengoa
A native of Zaldibar, Bizkaia, José Ramón
Cengotitabengoa is president of Whale Steel of Chicago. He received a
degree in engineering at Liege, Belgium, then worked as an engineer for
several years before coming to the U.S. to pursue a career in the steel
industry. He has been a leader in promoting Basque arts and cultural
activities, including erection of the Monument to the Basque Sheepherder
in Reno, financed by Basques and friends of Basques in the U.S. and in the
Basque Country.
William A. Douglass
William Douglass helped establish the Basque Studies
Program (now called the Center for Basque Studies) and served as its
director for thirty-three years until his retirement in 1999. He also has
edited the Basque Book Series of the University of Nevada Press for thirty
years. His many publications on Basque topics have all been groundbreaking
in the various fields of Basque studies. A native of Reno, he attended the
University of Nevada, Reno, majoring in Spanish literature, and received a
Ph.D. in Anthropology from the University of Chicago.
Emilia Doyaga
Emilia Doyaga, a native of Brooklyn, New York,
retired as a Distinguished Professor from State University of New York,
where she also served as Academic Vice President. She was also on the
faculties of St. John’s University, Brooklyn College and York College of
City University College of New York, where she was also a Dean. She
received a Ph.D. at New York University; IEM (Institute of Educational
Management) at Harvard.
Jeronima Echeverria
Jeronima Echeverria is currently the Asst. Provost at
California State University, Fresno, where she has also been a professor
and chair of the Department of History. She earned her BA in history and
humanities at the University of California, Irvine and completed a
teaching credential. After teaching social studies at the secondary school
level for twelve years, she earned her doctorate in history at University
of North Texas, with research focusing on Basque-related topics.
John Echeverria (Chair, 2001– )
John Echeverria was born and educated in Reno,
Nevada. After serving in the United States Air Force, he attended Hastings
College of Law where he received his Juris Doctorate degree. He is a named
partner in the prestigious San Francisco law firm of Walkup, Melodia,
Kelly & Echeverria, specializing in personal injury litigation
throughout the Western United States. Echeverria was selected for
membership in both the American Board of Trial Advocates and the American
College of Trial Lawyers
Pete Ernaut
Originally from Elko, Nevada, Pete Ernaut has served as Managing
Director, Government Affairs and Public Policy for Jones Vargas since
January of 2001. He is also the founder and president of Ernaut Strategies Incorporated,
a political consulting/government affairs firm. In 1999 he served as Chief-of-Staff to
Governor Guinn, administering all strategic, administrative and legislative affairs of
the State of Nevada. He also served as Nevada
State Assemblyman, Republican Floor Leader, and Chairman of the Interim
Committee on Electrical Deregulation as well as serving on several
State Committees.
Mary Gaztambide
Mary Gaztambide is the current president of North American
Basque Organizations, Inc. (NABO), and represents that body on our
Advisory Board. She resides in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Jose (Joe) M. Goicoechea
Joe Goicoechea was born in Lekeitio (Bizkaia) and migrated to
Australia in 1938 where he studied civil engineering pertaining
mainly to development of urban and suburban land sub-divisions,
highway construction, airport construction, local government
authority works including roads, water, sewerage, etc. He is a
member of the Society of Engineers of London. After serving for ten
years with a civil engineering consulting firm he formed his own
construction company—Vasco Construction Company Pty. Ltd.—in
Northwest Queensland. Today the Goicoechea group consists of nine
companies.
Xabier Irala
Xabier Irala was born in New York of Basque parents from Bilbao.
His father Antón was Secretary to the Presidency of the Basque
Government headed by Jose Antonio Aguirre, and head of the Basque
Delegation in New York until 1949. Xabier graduated with a B.S.
degree in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA from La Salle University
in Manila, Philippines. He has worked with General Electric,
including as Vice President Finance GE-CGR Europe, as Vice President
and CEO of Asea Brown Boveri Spain, and in 1996 he was appointed
Chairman and CEO of Iberia Airlines. He has served as Chairman of
the European Airlines Association, the International Air Transport
Association (IATA), and FITUR (International Tourism Fair). Since
2003 he has been the Chairman and CEO of Bilbao Bizkaia Kutxa
(Bilbao Savings Bank), In addition, he is chairman of several
foundations and member of many boards.
Sixto Jimenez
Sixto Jiménez received a Bachelor’s degree in Economic Science and
Business Administration from the Universidad Comercial de Deusto. He
worked in management of various companies and then became the CEO
for Viscofan, where he worked for 18 years until December 2000. By
2000 the company was the worldwide leader for meat product
casings, and had acquired the canned food company IAN, leader of the
national canned food market. He currently manages investments in
small companies in different sectors. He has also been a lecturer in
Strategic Management at the University of Zaragoza and is preparing
a book on management. Jiménez is a member of various Administration
Boards, such as Caja Navarra (Navarra Savings Bank), and is
President of the NGO Properu and Vice President of the Basque
Studies Societies in Navarra.
Ron D. Parraguirre
Justice Ron D. Parraguirre’s family emigrated from the Basque
country to western Nevada in the 1870s to ranch in the Carson City
area. He received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of San
Diego School of Law. He then moved to Washington, D.C., to
work for U.S. Senator Paul Laxalt. He was later admitted to the
Pennsylvania, District of Columbia, and Nevada Bars and became a
Counsel to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on
Criminal Law. In 1987 he returned to Nevada to join his father in
the private practice of law.
His judicial career began in 1991 when he won a seat on
the Las Vegas Municipal Court. In 1999, Governor Kenny Guinn
appointed him to a seat at the Eighth Judicial District Court. In
2003, Judge Parraguirre was appointed presiding Judge of the Civil
Division of the Eighth Judicial District Court and in 2004 he was
elected President of the Nevada District Judges Association and has
served on numerous committees and commissions. He won a seat on the
Nevada Supreme Court, beginning his term in January 2005.
Pello Salaburu
Pello Salaburu served as President of the University
of the Basque Country during the years 1996–2000 and as Vice President
from 1992–1996. He has a Ph.D. in Basque Philology from the University of
the Basque Country, and also studied at the universities of MIT, Cornell,
and New Mexico. He spent a year as a visiting scholar with the Center for
Basque Studies at UNR.
Presently he is Professor of Basque Philology at the University of
the Basque Country. He is the author of a dozen books on Basque
linguistics and of about forty scientific articles on language, and
is a regular contributor to the newspapers and magazines of
the Basque Country. In January of 2001, Dr. Salaburu was elected to
the prestigious European Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Koldo San Sebastián
Koldo San Sebastian is a well-known journalist, writer
and television producer. For eighteen years he worked at the Bilbao
newspaper Deia and he has produced more than two hundred
documentaries for ETB (Basque Public Television).. For the
past six years he has been a TV producer for different networks. In
addition, he has published over twenty books, some of them related
the Basque diaspora and the Basque exile in America. He collaborated
closely with Bibliographer Jon Bilbao in the establishment of
Harriluze, the Institute of the Basque Diaspora.
Gloria Totoricagüena
Dr. Gloria Totoricagüena (Ph.D., London School of Economics) is
the current Director of the Center for Basque Studies. She has
conducted unparalleled research on Basque communities from twenty
different countries, including Argentina, Uruguay, Peru, Chile,
Australia, England, Belgium and the United States. She has authored
four books relating to Basque migration, identity and diaspora
studies and is the project director for four works of the “Urazandi:
Basques Across the Seas” series. She represented diaspora Basques at
the World Congresses of Basque Collectivities of 1995, 1999 and
2003, when she was the keynote speaker. At the University of Nevada,
Reno, she has been granted the UNR Junior Faculty Research Award
2004, and the Mousel-Feltner Award for Research and Creativity 2004.
Antonio M.
de Ynchausti y Larrauri
Antonio M. de Ynchausti y
Larrauri was born in Manila, and studied at the College of St.
Francois Xavier in Ustaritz. He later attended the University
of Paris to study business administration, economics, and sociology.
He did post-graduate work at the Bouwcentrum in Rotterdam. He then
managed the family real estate holdings in San Sebastian. In 1959,
he and a brother founded the International Center of
Information and Documentation for the Construction Industry in
Southwestern Europe, Etxegintza, to prepare Basque industry for the
European Common Market. He served for four years as Philippine
Honorary Consul in San Sebastián, returning to the Philippines in
1964 to oversee the Ynchausti interests. He continued the family’s
tradition of philanthropy and service through his involvement in
numerous foundations and causes. He is currently the chairman and
president of Ynchausti Development Corporation.
Emeritus Members:
José María Basagoiti
José M. Basagoiti received degrees in Law and in
Philosophy and Letters from the University of Madrid. He is the former
president of several companies and organizations, including COPARMEX
(Confederation of the Mexican Republic’s Companies), USEM (Social Union
of Mexican Companies), Cigarros la Tabacalera Mexicana, S.A., Discos
Gamma, S.A., and Mexican Tobaccos, S.A. He has also served as a board
member of numerous organizations, including the World Business
Organization, the Social and Economic Council of the United Nations, and
the National Bank of Mexico.
Pete T. Cenarrusa
A native of Carey, Idaho, Pete Cenarrusa
graduated from the University of Idaho with a B.S. in Agriculture. He was
a high school educator, and served as a Marine Naval aviator in
World War II, a Corsair fighter pilot, retiring as a major. He
served as State Representative to the Idaho Legislature for nine
terms, before becoming Secretary of State of Idaho, an office he
held from 1967–2002.
He served for a term as National Dean of Secretaries of State.
In 2001 he was
granted the prestigious Sabino Arana Award.
|
