Fisher College of Business alumni, faculty, staff and students gathered for the fourth annual Alumni of Color Network Weekend to honor the accomplishments, positive impact and leadership of the college’s graduates.
Eight alumni were recognized for their work as trailblazers, change agents and supporters of the next generation of leaders. Throughout the weekend, participants also had a chance to network, meet and connect with students, explore Fisher and Ohio State’s campuses and gather for a Pre-Game at Fisher tailgate ahead of the Buckeyes’ football game against Western Michigan University.
“Each year, this event demonstrates the incredible impact our alumni of color, our advocates and our allies are having in business and throughout communities around the world,” said Cynthia Turner, Fisher’s associate dean of access, engagement and outreach. “And each year, I am heartened to see how eager, passionate and dedicated our alumni and friends ― whether they’re recent grads or established professionals ― are in supporting our college and our shared commitment to diversity.”
Alumni of Color Emerging Leader Awards
A celebratory luncheon featuring four young alumni kicked off the weekend. Malia Funk (BSBA ’17), Devin A. Graham (BSBA ’10), Kevin Hollis (MBA ’12) and Joshua Molina (BSBA ’16 ) were honored for their early, yet meaningful contributions to their professions, their alma mater, and their respective Black, Hispanic/Latino, and Asian Pacific Islander Desi American (APIDA) communities.
During an informal panel discussion with students and young alumni, the four Alumni of Color Emerging Leader Award recipients discussed a number of topics, including: their Ohio State experiences, the importance of continuous professional growth and education, their greatest challenges and comeback stories, current trends in their industries and why they choose to continue their support of Ohio State.
Malia Fun
k (BSBA ’17)
Vice President, Investments
Willistown Capital
As an ambitious student at Fisher majoring in finance and microbiology, Malia Funk participated in a number of signature programs that shaped who she is today, including Fisher’s Honors Cohort, Business Scholars, the Buckeye Undergraduate Consulting Club and Fisher Ink.
After graduation, she combined her undergraduate interests and began her career as a consultant focusing on health care. She turned her passion into a startup company advocating for quality health care for women, which she operated for two years before joining Williston Capital.
Malia Funk is a founding member and vice president of Willistown Capital, a private investment firm dedicated to partnering with businesses with a strong service ethos and vibrant culture. She is passionate about entrepreneurship, promoting diversity and inclusion, and advancing women’s health.
Devin A. Graham (BSBA ’10)
Head of Hiring Equity for the Cloud, YouTube, Marketing, Data Science and Executive Recruiting
Google
Devin Graham was recognized for helping others find their professional calling, much as she found hers as a human resources student while at Ohio State.
Following graduation, she served as the executive assistant to the chief diversity officer at Nationwide in Columbus and then as a campus recruiter and campus recruiting lead at JPMorgan Chase in Columbus, where she loved helping students find their first-time job with the company. At Chase, she also created the first sophomore internship program for Wealth Management and learned how to structure new programs aimed at increasing diversity and inclusion which, she says, she parlayed into her current role at Google.
Devin has worked at Google for the past six years in a variety of roles across People Operations, currently serving as the head of hiring equity for the Cloud, YouTube, marketing, data science and executive recruiting teams. She and her team work to ensure that equity, intentionality and accountability are built into every stage of the hiring process. Devin is also a co-lead of the New York City Chapter of the Black Googler Network.
Outside of work, Devin is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., and she also sits on the boards of the Buckeye Leadership Fellows, AIMbassadors, and CREATE for Education. She lives in Brooklyn, New York, and loves live music, art and finding new ways to build community.
Kevin Hollis (MBA ’12)
Physician and CFO
Anesthesiology Consultants of North Carolina
As an MBA student focusing on operations management and quality improvement, Kevin Hollis worked in Fisher’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion Student Services and Corporate and Community Outreach (ODISSCCO) and has since, along with his wife, contributed to its scholarships and administrative support fund.
Committed to assisting youth in reaching their fullest potential, he and two of his friends founded Brothers For Life after earning his undergraduate degree. The nonprofit youth support program was created on the principle that “together we can achieve but divided we would become victims of the society in which we lived.”
Kevin D. Hollis of Lansing, Michigan, attended J.W. Sexton High School. He was a three-sport athlete and graduated as one of the top high school students in the state of Michigan. Kevin earned a full ride football scholarship to Tennessee State University and graduated Magna Cum Laude in the spring of 2004.
After graduation, Kevin launched Brothers For Life, Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization created to empower inner-city youth to pursue academic excellence and be leaders in the community.
Kevin attended The Ohio State University’s College of Medicine and Fisher College of Business. He completed his anesthesiology residency at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics and is currently a practicing anesthesiologist, CFO and co-founder of Anesthesiology Consultants of North Carolina in Greensboro.
Joshua Molina, CPA (BSBA ’16)
Leadership Advisor and Associate Director
The Siegfried Group
While he has found professional success in the accounting field as the leadership advisor and associate director at The Siegfried Group, Joshua Molina’s passion is supporting and encouraging students to fulfill their greatest potential by mentoring and paying forward to tomorrow’s leaders. He’s active in his community through organizations such as Siegfried Youth Leadership and Junior Achievement, is an avid volunteer for the Association of Latino Professionals for America (ALPFA) and has served as a mentor at the Latino Leadership Development Institute.
Josh lives with passion, purpose and joy, striving to help others do the same. Grateful for the values instilled by his parents and grandparents, he leads his family, community and clients with these principles.
An accounting and finance leader, Josh began his career at Ernst and Young in Cleveland after graduating from The Ohio State University. In 2020, he joined The Siegfried Group, enhancing his skills and serving clients strategically. Now, as the leadership advisor and associate director of The Siegfried Group, he delivers innovative solutions through Talent Delivery Services.
In the community, Josh mentors others, enhancing their leadership capabilities. His involvement in his local church and organizations like Siegfried Youth Leadership, Junior Achievement, ALPFA and serving on the Fisher College of Business Alumni Board reflects his dedication to empowering others and fostering growth in his community.
Alumni of Color Legacy Awards
The weekend’s Evening of Celebration applauded three additional graduates for achieving excellence and recognition in their professional careers and for providing extraordinary service to their alma mater and their respective Black, Hispanic, Latinx and Asian Pacific Islander Desi American (APIDA) communities.
Damon Frost (BSBA ’96), Evangelina Cantú Girón (BSBA ’00) and Eric Ushiroda (MBA ’00) received Alumni of Color Legacy Awards for their personal and professional accomplishments.
William D. Bradford (MBA ’68, PhD ’71), emeritus dean and emeritus professor of finance at the Foster School of Business at the University of Washington, was honored for his contributions to higher education with The Thaddeus Spratlen Alumni of Color Distinguished Educator Award. The award, which was named for Thaddeus Spratlen (BSBA ’56, MA ’57, PhD ’62), an alumnus who transformed the way business schools deliver business education, honors educators who continue in his trailblazing footsteps, achieving great impact within academia and/or higher education.
Damon Frost (BSBA ’96)
Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer of P&G Beauty
CEO, Walker and Company Brands
A familiar face at Fisher, Damon Frost has dedicated himself to service as part of the college’s Alumni Board helping shape the direction of Fisher’s programs, growth and engagement. In recognition of this service, he received Fisher’s Professional Achievement Alumni Award in 2019. Outside of Fisher, Frost is a board member of the Cincinnati-Hamilton County Community Action Agency and a member of the Information Technology Senior Management Forum.
As the CEO of Walker and Company Brands, the makers of Bevel, Damon leads an innovative team dedicated to making health and beauty simple for people of color through solution-oriented products made with Black and Brown people in mind.
As the CIO of Procter & Gamble’s Global Beauty business, he leads the IT and digital capabilities for a portfolio of brands including Head & Shoulders, Pantene, Olay, SK-II, Secret and Old Spice. This includes driving digital and data strategy for all P&G Beauty brands and all end-to-end IT needs including AI, innovation and productivity opportunities.
Throughout his career, Damon has gained a broad depth of IT experiences including: leading DevOps for P&G’s sales, marketing, brand systems, initiative management and business intelligence systems; implementing P&G’s first ever global email system; leading the IT strategy for the coffee business; running P&G’s end user computing platforms and serving as the P&G India CIO.
Damon has been recognized in CIO Magazine India’s CIO 100 Winners in 2012, given the Professional Achievement Award by Fisher College of Business in 2019 and been a member of Information Technology Senior Management Forum (ITSMF) since 2015.
Damon holds a BSBA from Ohio State and currently resides in Cincinnati, Ohio, with his wife Karyn and two daughters. He serves on The Ohio State University Alumni Association Board of Governors and the Fisher College of Business Alumni Board.
Evangelina Cantú Girón (BSBA ’00)
Financial Systems Analyst
Constellation Insurance
Evangelina Cantú Girón quickly distinguished herself as a leader among her classmates and peers while at Fisher. In 1998, she was among a select few to receive a Distinguished Hispanic Ohioan Award, which she parlayed into a leadership position as president of Fisher’s Hispanic Business Student Association.
As a financial systems analyst at Constellation Insurance, she is a strong operations professional with knowledge in statutory reporting, generally accepted accounting principles and PAM for Investments accounting and management software.
Evangelina earned a BSBA in finance in 2000 from Ohio State and an MBA from the University of Cincinnati in 2020. She is a financial systems analyst at Constellation Insurance (previously Ohio National Financial Services) where her previous roles in investment accounting included investments operations, leading financial transformation projects, creating straight-through process improvements and new system implementation and deployment.
Before joining Ohio National Financial Services, Evangelina worked in the investment department at the State Teachers Retirement Systems in Columbus, Ohio. She enjoys supporting her husband, Thomas Girón, with his small business and cheering on her two sons, Max and Thomas, during their sporting events.
Eric Ushiroda (MBA ’00)
Human Resources Manager
LG Chem
During his time as an MBA student at Fisher, Eric Ushiroda served as a graduate assistant in ODISSCCO, where he worked with students, setting them up for success first on campus and then as professionals.
Ushiroda, a certified HR leader with progressive experience supporting manufacturing, corporate functions and distribution operations, is well-respected by his peers for being detail-oriented and bringing innovative ideas, a can-do attitude even in the face of tremendous challenges and being someone you can depend on for sage advice and counsel.
Eric is a human resources manager at LG Chem Ohio Petrochemical, Inc. based in Ravenna, Ohio.
He held several HR leadership positions at Visteon Corporation, Eaton Corporation, Transtar Industries and Stanley Black & Decker before joining LG Chem in March 2023. Eric’s prior HR experiences in different industries has been instrumental in setting up LG Chem’s new manufacturing site in Ravenna for future growth and success.
Eric, a Hawaii native, holds a bachelor’s degree in finance from The University of Hawaii at Manoa, an MBA from The Ohio State University and a MEd from The University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. As a graduate assistant at Fisher’s ODISSCCO office, Eric partnered with other students to create the Asian Business Student Association.
Eric has also served as a board member at the United Way of Portage County, Ohio, and as a committee chair and den leader with Cub Scout Pack 3280.
In his spare time, Eric enjoys spending time with his family, wife, Holly, and two children, Reina and Kenton, traveling, building small projects with LEGO, and supporting the Ohio State football team.
The Thaddeus Spratlen Alumni of Color Distinguished Educator Award Recipient
William D. Bradford (MBA ’68, PhD ’71)
Emeritus Dean and Emeritus Professor of Finance, Foster School of Business
University of Washington
Dr. William Bradford, emeritus dean and emeritus professor of finance at the Foster School of Business at the University of Washington, was celebrated for his pioneering curiosity and commitment to leadership and academia.
“When we speak of the spirit of the Spratlen Award, we celebrate the pioneering curiosity of an individual fully committed to leadership and academia,” said James Hill, chair of Fisher’s Department of Operations and Business Analytics. “We recognize William Bradford and his life’s work advancing and elevating the success of others through research, teaching and leadership!”
During his tenure as dean at Foster from 1994 to 1999, Bradford worked with Dr. Spratlen and, together, they helped create the Consulting and Business Development Center, an organization dedicated to understanding and empowering “underrepresented minority owned businesses as well as businesses in rural, urban, and suburban communities with historically high unemployment rates.”
His advocacy led to the creation of the Bradford-Osborne Award which honors his legacy and that of UCLA professor Alfred Osborne and seeks to stimulate additional research by businesses owned by people of color, provide public and corporate policy makers with insights to guide decision-making and equip business support organizations to deliver impactful programming.
Upon William’s retirement in 2020, the Foster School of Business at the University of Washington established the William Bradford Professorship, to be awarded to a faculty member concerned with diversity.
William served as the dean of the Foster School of Business and the Kirby Cramer Chair from 1994 to 1999 and was awarded the Endowed Professorship in Business and Economic Development in 2000 as a professor of finance and business economics, a position he held until retirement. His other roles included faculty director at the Consulting and Business Development Center and of the Minority Business Executive Program. In 2020, with Alfred Osborne, professor at UCLA’s Anderson School of Business, he established the Bradford-Osborne Award, the first national recognition of scholarly research on businesses owned by people of color.
William holds a BA in economics from Howard University and an MBA in finance and PhD in finance and economics from Ohio State. He serves as a consultant to numerous firms and conducts international lectureships in corporate finance and entrepreneurship in the UK, Indonesia, Egypt, the Ivory Coast, South Korea, Canada, China and South Africa and serves on the board of directors and board of advisors of the Commerce Bank in Seattle, Washington.
William has authored or co-authored three books and more than 75 articles on finance during his career and was inducted into the Minority Business Hall of Fame in 2013.
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