During its most recent meeting in May, the Swarthmore College Board of Managers announced that Harold “Koof” Kalkstein ’78 will serve as the Board’s next chair, and that Sujatha Srinivasan ’01 will be the Board’s next vice-chair. They will assume their respective positions on July 1. 

Kalkstein has served on the Board for the past 14 years, including as vice-chair since 2018. He spent the majority of his career at Boston Consulting Group, where he was a managing director and founded the company’s global energy practice. His connection to Swarthmore runs deep: His parents, Samuel Kalkstein ’37 and Elizabeth Goodrich ’39, and three of his siblings attended Swarthmore, as did one of his children, Alex ’06. Koof and his wife, Becky Snow, split their time between San Carlos, Calif., and Philadelphia.

“I am grateful and humbled by the opportunity to serve the College in this way,” says Kalkstein. “There is a palpable momentum on campus — we’ve committed to renewing and reimagining our campus infrastructure, we’re making tangible progress toward our goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2035, and President Smith has commenced the College’s first strategic planning process in more than a decade. I’m looking forward to supporting these and other initiatives that will help strengthen the Swarthmore student experience for generations to come.” 

Srinivasan is the lead for partnerships risk strategy at Stripe, a company that provides online payment processing for internet businesses. She previously spent 20 years at Goldman Sachs, including most recently as a managing director and the global co-head of market risk for Goldman’s Global Markets Division. She has been a member of Swarthmore’s Board of Managers for 14 years, including as chair of both the Audit and Risk Management and Student Affairs Committees. Srinivasan lives in Philadelphia, with her husband, Rajesh Vedanthan ’95, and their two children.

“It’s a great honor to be appointed to serve as vice-chair,” says Srinivasan. “My time as a manager has been a continuation of my Swarthmore education; it has been rewarding, challenging, thought-provoking, and educational. I am excited to carry that experience forward in support of advancing Swarthmore's mission.”

“Both Koof and Sujatha have displayed steady and thoughtful leadership during their time as members of the Board of Managers, and our community has already benefited significantly from their commitment to Swarthmore,” says President Valerie Smith. “I look forward to working with them in their new roles during  a truly remarkable time for the College.”

Kalkstein will succeed current Board chair Salem Shuchman ’84. Since becoming chair in 2018, Shuchman has led the Board through some of the College's most prosperous and challenging times. He was instrumental in the success of Changing Lives, Changing the World, Swarthmore’s largest-ever fundraising campaign, which raised more than $440 million for institutional priorities such as financial aid, faculty support, and campus facilities.

He also oversaw the Board’s approval of two monumental initiatives: addressing more than $134 million in accumulated deferred maintenance, and committing $69 million to the College’s energy plan, The Roadmap to Zero Carbon, which will enable Swarthmore to achieve carbon neutrality by 2035.  Shuchman also worked closely with the Board, President Smith, and other senior leaders to weather the disruption brought about by the pandemic.

“As I reflect on my time as Board chair, I feel a deep sense of gratitude and humility,” says Shuchman, who will remain on the Board. “It’s been a true privilege and a joy to work with my fellow managers; Val and her leadership team; and our incredible students, alumni, faculty, and staff members toward the shared goal of making Swarthmore a better, stronger institution of higher learning. And I am very happy to know that Koof and Sujatha will continue our good work together.” 

“There’s simply no way to quantify the various ways our community has benefited and will continue to benefit from Salem’s passion and dedication,” Smith adds. “On behalf of the entire Swarthmore community, I thank him for his service as chair, and I look forward to continuing to work with him as a member of the Board.”