Utica College names new board of trustees members

UTICA — Robert Brvenik, chair of the Utica College board of trustees, has announced the addition of four new board members: Krista DiBerardino, John Forte, Wester Miga, and Treesa Salter.

A Rome native, DiBerardino earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration and marketing from Utica College in 1982. She began her career in merchandising and management with Montgomery Ward. A recognized expert in digital and social marketing, brand strategy, consumer insights, and global expansion, she is now retired from her position as chief marketing officer with Spin Master, a global children’s entertainment company.

Forte is a 1973 graduate of Utica College with a bachelor’s degree in political science. He is a financial advisor with Eagle Strategies LLC. A member of the Capital District Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, he is past president of the Eastern New York Chapter of the Society of Financial Service Professionals. Forte is founder and managing partner of Wealth Strategies Group in Latham.

Miga is a 1976 graduate of Utica College, earning his bachelor’s degree in speech communication and dramatic arts. Retired from General Mills, Inc. after 30 years of service, Miga managed a $100 million budget to produce a $1 billion in sales. He currently serves as deputy town supervisor for the Town of Newcomb, where he has held positions on the planning board, comprehensive plan, smart growth, and special projects committees. 

Salter hails from Buffalo and is a 1988 graduate of Utica College. She recently retired from the U.S. Air Force Nurse Corps, where she served as director of program operations at TRICARE Regional Office North within the Defense Health Agency in Falls Church, Virginia. Throughout her 24-year career in the military, she has held leadership positions including clinical nurse, flight nurse, assistant nurse manager, nurse manager, chief of operations, director of medicine services, and chief nurse executive.