Entrepreneurial Approaches to Auxiliary Organizations Practices
Tracks
Breakout Session 3
Tuesday, January 14, 2025 |
9:00 AM - 10:00 AM |
Driftwood 2 |
Overview
Driftwood 2
Details
This session will provide a practitioner’s perspective on the essential role of auxiliary organizations in ensuring institutional success, sustainability, and stakeholder satisfaction. Given the rapidly evolving climate for institutions of higher education, the most effective AO's will adapt, anticipate, innovate, and reinvent themselves using entrepreneurial approaches to accomplish their missions. The session will explore some of the more effective and productive approaches for AO's, such as supplier diversity, strategic partnerships, economic development, and community engagement.
Speaker
Peter Freska
Employee Benefits Practice Leader
Acrisure
Entrepreneurial Approaches to Auxiliary Organizations Practices
Biography
For more than two decades, Peter has worked with employers across the US to strategically discuss how to revolutionize healthcare. His goal is to change the conversation and reimagine healthcare with employers. Peter’s experience includes high-level negotiations, communication, and long-term strategic planning. With focus on service excellence, Peter and the Acrisure Team provide value to employers with unique perspectives and experience. Peter’s background with non-profits, healthcare, manufacturing, and educational institutions enables him to work well with constrained budget models.
Last year Peter was recently honored by Employee Benefits News Excellence in Benefits program for changemakers in the benefits and HR community, including employers with top benefits programs, innovators providing tech-driven solutions and leading advisers who connect the dots. Now in its third year, the annual initiative shines a spotlight on the community’s brightest, most forward-thinking leaders.
This year, Peter’s Team has been named a 2024 Top Employee Benefit Consultant by Mployer. Their Top Employee Benefits Consultant Award Program evaluates each benefits broker and consultant office based on their depth of experience across employer industries, sizes, and plan design features, as well as employer client ratings and reviews.
Peter served as the President of the local National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA) Association, a member of the Orange County Employee Benefits Council and the National Association of Health Underwriters. He has moderated NAIFA’s Leadership In Life Institute program for 6 years.
Additionally, Peter serves as the Board Chair for OC-Emergency Medical Training, the premier EMS training programs in California.
Peter also maintains the designation of Certified Employee Benefits Specialist (CEBS) from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. Additionally, Peter holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Marketing from California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) and a Master’s Degree in Health Management and Policy (Master of Public Health) from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
In his spare time Peter likes to spend quality time with his beautiful wife, five children and two dogs seeing the country.
Dr. Leroy Nunery II
President, Evolution Advisors LLC
Acrisure
Entrepreneurial Approaches to Auxiliary Organization Practices
Biography
David Nunery II is an accomplished executive and entrepreneur with a unique breadth of experiences formed from over forty years in corporate banking and capital markets, higher education, professional sports, charter school management, public education, and with a family-owned electrical contracting firm, Leroy Nunery & Sons, Inc. In 2007, Leroy founded PlūsUltré LLC, a strategic advisory firm that focuses on turnarounds, transformations, growth and innovation planning, resource development, talent development, governance training, and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) strategies.
Dr. Nunery has extensive experience in governance and has attained the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) Directorship Certified® designation. He currently serves on Independence Blue Cross’ Regional Advisory Board and Consumer and Business Affairs Advisory Committee (2021 – present) and was appointed in 2022 by Pennsylvania Governor Thomas Wolf to serve on Cheney University’s Council of Trustees. He is chairperson of 360 Community Capital, a non-profit organization sponsored by the American Council of Life.
Russell Wittmeier
Director, Human Resources & Payroll
Chico State Enterprises
Entrepreneurial Approaches to Auxiliary Organizations Practices
Biography
After 30 + years in the financial industry, Russell was hired in 2015 at CSU, Chico Research Foundation as Director of Human Resources. Coming from the private sector and financial background provided Russell with a different perspective in finding reasonable cost/high value benefit options for their organization. Since coming aboard Chico State Enterprises in addition to Human Resources, Russell has been tasked with duties covering payroll, facilities and risk management. Russell is an alumni of Chico State.
