Fashion designer, entrepreneur and philanthropist, Ms. Unger began her multifaceted career in 1968 as design assistant to Geoffrey Beene. Two years later, she founded her own dress firm, Kay Unger — the first of several successful global fashion concerns she founded and managed, including The Gillian Group, Kay Unger New York, Kay J’s Pajamas, and Phoebe Couture. In 2012, she formed Kay Unger Design as a means of focusing her boundless energy on unique design projects that benefit from her creative and leadership skills.

A committed philanthropist, Kay is CEO of the Kay Unger Family Foundation (KUFF), with its mission of “venture philanthropy.” KUFF supports existing foundations for cancer care and research and also provides funding for scholarships to underserved youths who are talented in the arts.

Born and raised in Chicago, Kay has lived in New York throughout her career; she currently lives in SoHo. She has two sons and five grandchildren.

Carly-Ann Fergus explores the intersection of entrepreneurship, fashion, and innovation. She builds ecosystems and programs that help entrepreneurs launch and grow their businesses. Carly-Ann most recently served as the director of Labs at XRC Labs, a retail tech accelerator launched out of Parsons School of Design. During her tenure at XRC, she supported and helped build a diverse ecosystem with a portfolio of 55 start-ups; more than 250 industry experts, including mentors, retailers, and investors; and a resource partner network of service providers for start-ups.

Before working at XRC, Carly-Ann received an MA in Fashion Studies (with a focus on Strategic Design and Management) from Parsons. Her thesis research centered on the rise of New York City as a global fashion capital and the way it functions as an ecosystem for emerging fashion designers. This research was inspired by her early experience working with emerging fashion brands, through which she gained a range of skills in brand strategy and operations.

Carly-Ann holds a BA in Visual Communications from SUNY Farmingdale. She serves on the Associate Board of Directors of the Opportunity Network, a nonprofit organization that fosters networks and opportunities for students from historically underrepresented communities, and the Advisory Board of the CFDA Elaine Gold Launch Pad program.

Linda Rappaport is Of Counsel at Shearman & Sterling LLP in New York City. She is a former practice group leader of the Compensation, Governance & ERISA/Private Client Group as well as a founding member of the firm’s Corporate Governance Advisory Group. Her practice focuses on all aspects of executive compensation and benefits, including corporate, securities, and tax laws and related corporate governance and regulatory matters. She has broad experience in the design and implementation of executive incentive programs and in the negotiation and preparation of executive employment contracts and severance arrangements, with an emphasis on the financial services and entertainment industries. Her practice also encompasses all compensation, benefits, and related governance issues associated with corporate acquisitions, divestitures, public offerings, restructurings, and bankruptcies.

Ms. Rappaport has a special focus on the representation of global, U.S., and non-U.S. companies and their boards of directors and compensation committees in corporate governance matters, including CEO succession, public disclosure, and executive compensation. She also represents individual executives of public companies and private enterprises.

Active in lecturing, Ms. Rappaport is the author of numerous articles on a variety of corporate governance and executive compensation issues. She has been ranked Band 1 for Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation: New York in Chambers USA since 2007. 

Ms. Rappaport became a partner of Shearman & Sterling in 1985. She has served three terms as an elected member of the firm’s Policy Committee through 2014 and has been a member of the firm’s Executive Group. She is also a founding member and advisor of the firm’s Women’s Initiative For Success, Excellence and Retention (WISER) and a member of its Diversity Committee and the firm’s Hiring Partner. Before joining the firm in 1979, she served as a law clerk to Chief Judge James S. Holden, U.S. District Court of the District of Vermont, from 1978 to 1979.

Dr. Dwight A. McBride became The New School’s ninth president on April 16, 2020. With nearly three decades in higher education, Dr. McBride is an experienced leader, accomplished educator, and author. Prior to his appointment at The New School, he was the provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs at Emory University, where he also held the position of Asa Griggs Candler Professor of African American Studies, Distinguished Affiliated Professor of English, and associated faculty in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. Dr. McBride previously served at Northwestern University as the dean of The Graduate School, associate provost for Graduate Education, and Daniel Hale Williams Professor of African American Studies, English, and Performance Studies. Earlier he served as dean of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences at the University of Illinois at Chicago and on the faculty of the University of Pittsburgh.

A leading scholar of race and literary studies, Dr. McBride has published award-winning books, essays, articles, and edited volumes that examine connections between race theory, black studies, and identity politics. He received his AB in English with a certificate in African American Studies from Princeton University and his MA and PhD in English from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Jonah oversees the university’s fundraising strategy and leads the team responsible for generating significant resources through individual, corporate and foundation giving. He is an accomplished fundraising leader with 16 years of experience, most recently as Chief Development Officer for the Jewish Museum in New York City. His earlier roles at the Jewish Museum have included Director of Major Gifts, Senior Director of Individual Giving, and Acting Deputy Director of Development. Previously, he was the Major Gifts Officer for Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism and was the Assistant Director of Development for Opera America. He has also held fundraising positions at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Columbia University’s School of the Arts, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.