Mexican Museum Welcomes New Board Members

The Mexican Museum, the premier West Coast museum of Mexican, Mexican-American, Chicano, Latin American and Latino art, culture and heritage, announces the addition of six new members to the Museum's Board of Trustees.

"These six individuals bring exceptional experience in business, finance, and the nonprofit industry," said Andy Kluger, chairman of The Mexican Museum's Board of Trustees. "I am very pleased to have such notable people express their support as we move forward with the design and construction of the Museum's new facilities in downtown San Francisco's Yerba Buena Garden Arts District."

The new members will serve on various committees of the Board or Trustees and include:

Chris Bishko: Bishko is an Investment Partner at Omidyar Network, a global philanthropic investment firm. At Omidyar Network, Bishko leads investments in U.S. technology enabled financial services companies, focusing on businesses that empower individuals and merchants in underserved markets through innovative products and services. Chris received a B.S. from Duke University where he majored in biomedical engineering and English literature.

Edgar De Sola, M.D.: Dr. De Sola is the Venezuelan-born President and Chief Executive Officer at De Sola Capital Partners, Inc., a San Francisco-based firm that focuses in proprietary trading, investment coaching and instruction. He is an Adjunct Professor at Heald College and Bryman College in San Francisco, and a former Adjunct Professor at Valencia Community College's Finance Department in Orlando, FL. Dr. De Sola earned his medical doctor degree from Central University School of Medicine in Caracas, Venezuela, and a Master of Public Health (Health Administration) from the University of South Florida in Tampa.

Olga Milan-Howells: Milan-Howells is the Owner/Partner of Milan-Howells Investments and a luxury real estate broker and developer in San Francisco. A certified public accountant at Deloitte & Touche before joining Mobil Oil Corporation, she rose rapidly through the company, eventually leading the finance and accounting group at Mobil Oil de Mexico, the first woman to hold the position. She currently serves on the boards of the Upper Noe Valley Neighborhood Association and World Arts West, a non-profit organization that sponsors the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival. Milan-Howells is a graduate of the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, where she completed a double major in Accounting and Finance.

Alfredo Pedroza: Pedroza is Senior Vice President and California Government Relations Director for Wells Fargo & Company. Before joining Wells Fargo, he served in San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom's administration, the San Francisco Neighborhood Parks Council, and as Senior Program Associate for the Trust for Public Land: Western Region. A recognized community leader, he has served on the San Francisco Park and Recreation Open Space Advisory Committee and the review panel for the San Francisco Community Challenge Grant program. Pedroza is currently a member of the Lower 24th Street Neighborhood and Merchant Association board and the Board of Directors of Honor PAC and the GLBT Historical Society. He also remains active with the Board of Directors of Precita Eyes Muralists. Pedroza earned his B.S. in International Business Administration from the University of San Francisco.

Safa Rashtchy: Rashtchy is an active angel investor and advisor in Silicon Valley with close ties to China, India and other international markets. He is the former Managing Director, Senior Research Analyst and Lead China analyst at Piper Jaffray and Company, where he led the firm's expansion efforts in the Internet industry and in China. Rashtchy is currently serving on the boards of InvestmentYogi.com (India), Wings Learning Center, Youeye, and Capshare Media. He is also on the advisory boards of Triptrotting, LocalMotion, ChinaVenture (China), Early Bird Alert, and Shoptap (theHunt.com). Rashtchy holds a master's degree in business administration from Boston University and a bachelor's degree in engineering from Purdue University.

Ann Rockefeller Roberts: For close to 40 years, Rockefeller Roberts has been a philanthropist and activist whose endeavors include a strong focus on Native American cultures. She is the award-winning founder of the Fund of the Four Directions (now part of the Ingrid Washinawatok El-Issa Flying Eagle Woman Fund), which centers on the revitalization of the life-ways and cultures of Native Americans of North America, with a strong emphasis on language restoration and intergenerational collaboration. Rockefeller Roberts has also served on the boards of the George Gustav Heye Center of the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian in New York City and the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC. In addition, Rockefeller Roberts conducted a national search for an appropriate home for her father, Nelson A. Rockefeller's, major collection of Mexican folk art, making possible the donation of his 3000-piece collection to two outstanding American institutions: The Mexican Museum in San Francisco and The San Antonio Museum in Texas. She received her master's degree in Landscape Architecture from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.

The Mexican Museum, which is the only San Francisco museum to be named an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, continues to receive strong public support through its ¡Adelante! fundraising program. People are encouraged to support The Mexican Museum by becoming members or by upgrading their current membership levels to the new Builder's Society level, which enables individuals, businesses and organizations to support the museum for $1 a day.