Poole College of Management Welcomes New Chair and 3 Advisory Board Members

The NC State Poole College of Management announces the new chair and the addition of three new members to the college’s advisory board. 

The advisory board works directly with the dean’s office and the college’s executive team to maintain a vital connection with real-world issues and industry trends. Its members are key business and public-sector leaders that help Poole College fulfill its mission and vision. 

Meet the New Advisory Board Chair, Christine Holmes

Christine Holmes currently serves as a partner at Ernst & Young, a multinational professional services network, in the Des Moines, Iowa, office and has been with the company for nearly 25 years. She has served domestic and global insurance and insurance services clients reporting under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (US GAAP) and US Statutory Accounting practices. 

Holmes is an alumna of Poole College receiving her bachelor’s degree in accounting in 1988. In 2004, Holmes and her husband, Charles, established a scholarship endowment towards the Jenkins MAC Program.

Meet the New Advisory Board Members

Therence Pickett, vice president and general counsel, Volvo

Originally from Pennsylvania, Therence Pickett is an alumnus of NC State with degrees in business management and economics he received in 1988. Pickett believes his business acumen from his undergraduate years prepared him for earning a law degree from Duke University and strengthened his career in corporate and in-house law. 

Pickett currently resides in Greensboro, North Carolina, serving as the vice president and general counsel for Volvo. He formerly served on the BOG under Margaret Spellings and has received the Black Alumni Society Legacy Award in 2019. 

Judy Whiting, Truist Bank

Judy Whiting is a former senior vice president for Bank of America and has recently started working with Truist Bank. Whiting and her family generously provided the Whiting Family Scholarship Endowment to NC State. 

Whiting received her Bachelor of Arts from Duke University and went on to earn a Master of Business Administration in finance from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her son, George Whiting, recently graduated from the Jenkins Master of Accounting program in spring 2020. 

Todd Yates, former president, Hill, Chesson & Woody

As of May 2020, Todd Yates retired from serving as the long-time president of Hill, Chesson & Woody, an employee benefits service operating in Raleigh. Yates is a 1989 graduate of the Poole College of Management earning a Bachelor of Arts in business management. 

Todd and Michelle Yates, his wife who is also a Poole College alumna, established the Yates Family Extraordinary Opportunity Scholarship to benefit students of Poole. Their children, Emory and Collin, are current students at NC State with Collin finishing his senior year in Poole College.