New Members Appointed to Darden School Foundation Board

The University of Virginia Darden School of Business and the Darden School Foundation today announced that two new members were elected to the Foundation Board of Trustees, effective immediately.

The new trustees, who will serve three-year terms, are: George S. Tahija, president director of Indonesia-based PT Austindo Nusantara Jaya (ANJ) and chief executive of the Austindo Group, and Ned Hooper, senior vice president and chief strategy officer of Cisco.

“These two Darden graduates will bring valuable perspectives to the board, which aims to serve and support the Darden School as a leading business school and the most high-engagement learning experience in the world,” said Peter Kiernan, chairman of the Darden School Foundation Board of Trustees. “George Tahija, who leads an important holding company in Indonesia with broad commercial interests as well as significant philanthropic pursuits, will bring Asian expertise and global business savvy. Ned Hooper, a 13-year veteran of Silicon Valley-based Cisco, drives the technology company’s business vision. Darden is surging on many fronts, and through their new roles, George and Ned will help shape the vision for Darden’s future.”

George Tahija received an MBA from Darden in 1986 and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Trisakti University of Indonesia. As ANJ’s president director, he oversees the Indonesian holding company, which is wholly owned by the Tahija family. ANJ has investments in natural resources, including food and energy, and in the financial and medical services sectors. Mr. Tahija resides in Jakarta, Indonesia, and is an avid mountain climber and photographer. Over the past five years, he has summited Tanzania’s Mt. Kilimanjaro, Indonesia’s Carsten’s Pyramid and Russia’s Mt. Elbrus. In 2005, he wrote the book A Walk in the Clouds and in 2006 published a book of photographs called Land of Water, Vol. I: From Bali to Komodo. He is a member of The Nature Conservancy Indonesia Chapter Advisory Board, serves as chairman of the plenary committee of the Trisakti University Foundation and is a founding member of Jakarta’s PSKD Mandiri School.

Ned Hooper, a 1994 graduate of Darden’s MBA program, serves as Cisco’s chief strategy officer. In his role, he identifies the next market transitions across key customer segments and integrates strategies that leverage all Cisco assets. He leads corporate development and is responsible for business development activities, including acquisitions, equity investments and the incubation of innovative technologies that execute Cisco’s build, buy, partner innovation strategy. Hooper holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Colorado and lives in the San Francisco Bay area.

“Darden has a history of strong board leadership. Now comprised of 41 members, the Darden School Foundation Board of Trustees provides a strong link between the academic and business communities. The addition of George Tahija and Ned Hooper will strengthen this link,” said Trip Davis, president of the Darden School Foundation and senior associate dean for external relations. “We are grateful to Darden’s trustees for their deep commitment and extraordinary service.”