A member of Junior Statesmen from 1979-1982, Susan Solinsky Duryea was was the state speaker of JSA in the 1981/82 school year. During her time as speaker, she led the JSA effort to successfully lobby the California state legislature to give the student representative of the state Board of Education a vote. She attended the Davis Summer School program in 1981 and joined the foundation board in 2004.
An independent businesswoman since 2003, Susan consults in sales and marketing for the media, international and non-profit sectors. Previously, she was managing director of the Council of International Hospitals and a member of the policy committee of the Advisory Board Co., which she joined in 1988 as a director of marketing. Later, Susan held various domestic and international management positions, including senior vice president and managing director of the international division of the Corporate Executive Board Co. Before then, she was regional director of sales for FISI*Madison Financial and marketing director for The Centre for International Financial Analysis.
Graduating from Princeton University in 1986, Susan completed her thesis on Spain’s role in NATO in conjunction with the University of Madrid. Susan worked as a page for both U.S. Sen. S.I. Hayakawa (R-Calif.) and former President George H.W. Bush, while he served as vice president of the United States and president of the U.S. Senate. Susan also worked in Madrid for Don Leopoldo Calvo-Sotelo y Bustelo, the second democratic president of Spain after Francisco Franco’s regime.
Susan volunteers broadly in the San Francisco Bay Area. She participates on the board of trustees for the Wender Weiss Foundation for Children and previously chaired its annual fund-raiser. She also is a member of the San Francisco Ballet Auxiliary, where she was luncheon chair of its fashion show and has co-chaired the ENCORE! Opening Night dinner for the San Francisco Ballet as well as the “Bash” before the Black and White Ball for the San Francisco Symphony. She also chaired the San Francisco Art Institute Gala dinner. She is currently helping Stanford University Hospital in its efforts to raise funds to build new facilities. Susan lives in Burlingame with her husband Paul and five-year-old son.
