Stephen Ritterbush, managing partner of Fairfax Partners,
has been named to Union College's Board of Trustees, it was
announced by Stephen Ciesinski, chairman of Union's Board of Trustees.
Ritterbush earned bachelor's degrees in civil engineering
and political science from Union in 1968.
“I am delighted to welcome Steve Ritterbush back to his alma mater,” Ciesinski said. “His leadership and experience will serve
the board and this College very well. I look forward to working closely with
him to advance Union College.”
“The undergraduate degrees I
received from Union provided a great bedrock for my career, and the bonds of friendship
forged there remain important to this day,” Ritterbush said. “I am personally
excited to become a trustee during this important period of growth and
opportunity for the College.”
Ritterbush is a partner at
Fairfax Partners in Vienna, Va., a
private equity investment firm. Ritterbush has founded more than 25 companies
including ISR Solutions, the world's largest privately
held security systems integration company, and AppNet
Systems, Inc., a company that provided a variety of web-based services ranging
from inventory management to web page design, that ultimately was sold to an
internet service provider. Currently, he is chairman of HealthAspex,
a third party benefits administration company and serves as president and CEO
of TRAXUS Technologies, a supply chain systems integration and security
company.
With Johnson & Johnson,
Ritterbush formed two investment partnerships that nurtured the growth of
medical device and drug technology companies. Today, two of the portfolio companies
are Indigo Medical, a Johnson & Johnson-owned company and a leading
developer of less invasive laser surgery; and CollaGenex
Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading developer of drugs for dental and
dermatological diseases.
Besides his Union degrees, Ritterbush
also earned a master's of science degree in oceanography from the Department of
Geophysics at the University of Hawaii, and a
master's degree in law and diplomacy and a Ph.D. in international economics
from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy of Tufts University. Ritterbush
was also a Rockefeller Foundation fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of
Government, Harvard University. While at Union he
studied at the University of Stockholm, Sweden, in
1968.
Ritterbush serves on the Dean's
Council at the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, and is
a director of the Chemical and Biological Arms Control Institute.
As a student at Union, he was
active in the All College Council, a class officer (president for three years),
and a member of WRUC, the College radio station. A captain of Union's
lacrosse team, he is remembered for scoring five goals in a season finale 13-9
win over RPI, while his broken hand was in a cast. He also scored 4 goals and 3
assists in Union's 12-7 win over Syracuse in 1966.
For profiles of other recently named trustees, see these sites:
John E. Kelly III: http://www.union.edu/N/DS/s.php?s=3466
Lawrence Pedowitz:: http://www.union.edu/N/DS/s.php?s=3517