Quincy University Board of Trustees adds four new members

QUINCY — The Quincy University Board of Trustees recently elected four new members: Sam Banks, Jean Buckley, Murphy Grant and Mary Mooney. 

In a press release, Ralph Oakley, chair of the QU Board of Trustees, said, “Our new class of trustees adds to an already strong board that is helping guide QU. This group of people is committed to educational excellence and to ensuring QU will continue to grow and prosper.”

Banks, a 1976 graduate, is a director at Busey Bank in Champaign. During his years at Quincy, Banks began a life of service to others by volunteering in what ultimately became the Big Brother Big Sister program. Banks spent the better part of 30 years working with abused, neglected and dependent children from throughout Illinois.

Following tenures with Chaddock in Quincy and Cunningham Children’s Home in Urbana, Banks returned to his Chicago roots and accepted the position of president and CEO of Glenwood School for Boys and Girls, a residential boarding school for at-risk, low-income students from throughout the Chicago area.

He also found time to achieve success as a basketball official. While still in college, Banks began refereeing YMCA kids’ games. He has since officiated hundreds of games at both the high school and college levels, including NCAA Division I, and was inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame as an official in 2016. Banks earned his sociology degree from QU in 1976 and a master’s degree in social work from the University of Illinois at Chicago. He is married to Maureen Banks, who is leaving the QU Board of Trustees after serving for six years.

Buckley, who attended Quincy University from 1974-76, is president of the Tracy Family Foundation and a member of the Dot Foods, Inc. Board of Directors. She served on the Tracy Family Council for three years and as a board member of the Community Foundation in Quincy from 1999 to 2007. Buckley was the Community Foundation chairperson for two years. She served as a Steering Committee leader and Quincy Area Campaign leader for QU’s GOAL 2000 campaign. Buckley graduated from the University of Illinois in 1977. Her husband, Michael, is retired as the vice president of business development at Dot Foods, Inc.

Grant, a 1997 graduate, has been an athletic trainer for more than 25 years and is recognized as a  leader in collegiate sports medicine. Grant’s knowledge base in injury prevention, sports performance and rehabilitation has kept him on the cutting edge of health care in both the  professional athletics and collegiate settings.

Grant was named executive chair of the Intercollegiate Council for Sports Medicine in January 2017. He is the owner of Grant Sports Performance and Therapy, the exclusive provider of physical therapy and performance  enhancement for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Before working with the Cavaliers, Grant spent a  season with the Utah Jazz. Before his work with the NBA, Grant held athletic and healthcare  administration roles with Wake Forest University, the University of Kansas and Oklahoma State University.

He is a board member of Summer Search, a national non-profit organization that provides collegiate opportunities for high school students from low-income communities. Grant earned his bachelor’s degree in athletic training from QU in 1997 and is a member of the QU Athletic Hall of Fame as an individual and as a member of a team. Grant earned his master’s degree in exercise science from Illinois State University. He is married to QU alum Amy Grant.

Mary Mooney has a strong background in international operations, systems development and implementation and compliance. She has worked with many businesses and sectors, primarily in telecommunications, precious metals and commodities, with a focus on business modeling, strategic entity formation strategies, as well as consulting on and negotiating targeted acquisitions.

Mooney is the co-founder of Exclusive Group Holdings, Inc., a tech-data driven international telecommunications carrier. Prior to transitioning into the business sector, Mooney was the member of a prominent litigation firm in St. Louis, Mo., specializing her practice on securities and commodities litigation and compliance.

Mooney dedicates more than 200 hours per year doing pro bono legal work to uplift women in the local community by representing them in litigation matters. She serves as a mentor for first-year law students at Ave Maria School of Law in Naples, Fla., and at her alma mater, Saint Louis University. Mooney earned a bachelor’s degree from Illinois State University and earned an MBA with a specialty in finance and juris doctorate from Saint Louis University. She is the wife of QU alum Jim Mooney.

The Quincy University Board of Trustees has 28 members. Nineteen of them are alumni of the university. While some trustees live in or near Quincy, other trustees live throughout the United States. Three board members are Franciscan friars.