Friday Commencement Speaker
James A. Bell has served as corporate president, chief financial officer (CFO) and an executive vice president of The Boeing Company, the world’s largest aerospace company, since June 2008.
A native of Los Angeles, Bell earned his bachelor’s degree in accounting from California State University, Los Angeles. A recipient of Cal State L.A.’s 2005 Distinguished Alumni Award, Bell was selected among the Top 100 Most Important Blacks in Technology in the 2006 U.S. Black Engineer & Information Technology magazine.
A 36-year Boeing veteran, Bell has extensive experience overseeing business performance and strategic growth initiatives at the Chicago-based integrated aerospace company. As CFO, he is responsible for overall financial management of the company, its financial reporting and transparency, and for multiple corporate functions including controller, treasury, investor relations, long-range planning and corporate and strategic development.
He was named acting CFO in November 2003 and formally elected to the position by the Boeing board of directors in January 2004. In addition to his former CFO duties, Bell served as Boeing president and chief executive officer on an interim basis.
He is a member of the board of directors of the Joffrey Ballet, the Chicago Urban League, World Business Chicago, Dow Chemical Company, the Chicago Economic Club and New Leaders for New Schools.
Saturday Commencement Speaker
Tito Guerrero, III became the president of Cambridge College in Massachusetts on March 1, 2009. Guerrero has been described as “a visionary leader with a stellar national reputation and a wealth of diverse academic experience.”
He was most recently vice president and associate provost for diversity at Texas A&M University. Previously, he was president of Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas, and of the University of Southern Colorado. He has served as a director for the American Council on Education, American Association of State Colleges & Universities, the Hispanic Association of Colleges & Universities, and American Humanics, Inc.
Currently, Guerrero serves on the board of visitors for Air University, United States Air Force. He also serves as an editorial board member for The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education and SAM Advanced Management Journal.
He obtained his bachelor’s degree in health education and biology from Texas A&M University, his master’s degree in education from the University of North Texas, and his Doctorate in Education from Harvard University. Guerrero received the Harvard Alumni of Color Achievement Award in 2007 and was selected among the 100 Most Influential Hispanics in the United States by Hispanic Business Magazine in 2006.