2023 Slate of Nominees

Alumni Trustee

Alumni trustees are Middlebury alumni elected to the Board of Trustees and serve five-year terms.

Zachary Bourque ’01

Current alumni trustee, elected for second term.

Zach is a director and shareholder at Rice Heard & Bigelow, a firm of private trustees in Boston that can trace its history back to 1782.  He joined the firm in 2001 and became a partner in 2010.  In this role, Zach serves as trustee on numerous trusts for the benefit of charities, families, and individuals.  He is a member of the firm’s Investment Committee and Investment Strategy Committee.  He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is a member of the CFA Institute.  Zach is an active member of the CFA Boston Society and the Boston Estate Planning Council.  

Zach received his Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Middlebury College.   At Middlebury, he was a member of the varsity basketball team and participated in number of extracurricular activities, including student government.  Zach also attended the Middlebury Spanish Language School summer program in preparation for a study abroad semester in Madrid during his junior year.  
 
Zach has stayed connected to Middlebury in a number of ways, including conducting alumni interviews, hosting interns at his firm, and serving as a Class Agent.  He has held various roles within the Middlebury Alumni Association, including head of the Boston chapter, board member for 10 years, and ultimately President from 2012-2014.  Zach currently serves on Middlebury’s Schools Board of Overseers.

Outside of his commitment to Middlebury, Zach enjoys giving back to his local community through various volunteer roles.  He has served on the Greater Boston Food Bank’s Kitchen Cabinet and the parish council of St. Cecilia Church in Boston, and is an active volunteer soccer and basketball coach in the youth sports program at the Charles River YMCA.  Zach and his wife Megan live outside of Boston with their four young children.

MAA Directors

The MAA Board of Directors meets twice a year to discuss ways to engage with and advocate for alumni, serving as an advisory group for the Alumni Office. In addition, the board votes on the annual Alumni Achievement Award, Alumni Plaque Award, and Alumni Trustee candidates.

Catherine Blizzard ’20

Catherine Blizzard ’20 is a partnerships and development manager at the global health nonprofit Last Mile Health. Hailing from Dallas, Texas, she spent her undergraduate years exploring all that Vermont had to offer, from skiing and hiking to the fall foliage. While at Middlebury, she attended the Language Schools, studied abroad for a year in Mainz and Berlin, Germany, and volunteered in various capacities within the wider Middlebury and Addison County community. When her senior year was abruptly cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, she searched for ways to stay connected in a newly virtual world. After graduating virtually with a degree in international and global studies and returning for an in-person graduation two years later, she stayed engaged with Middlebury through the Alumni Admissions Program, interviewing candidates from her home region. She remains active with Middlebury’s alumni network in Boston, where she is now based, and looks forward for the opportunity to carry her engagement forward as a Middlebury Alumni Association Board member. 

Nia Robinson ’19

Nia Robinson is a 2019 graduate from Chicago, Illinois, who majored in sociology with a focus in data science. During her time at Middlebury, she participated in a variety of activities, including writing as a member of the Middlebury Campus editorial board, performing with Poor Form Poetry, and serving as the copresident of the Black Student Union, among many other positions allowing her to connect with the community at large. Her TEDxMiddlebury speech, working with students at Mary Hogan, and weekly breakfasts with the Muffintops swim club are highlights of her time in school. By her senior year, she was a manager of Crossroads Café, a senior fellow at the Admissions Office, and Student Government president. Currently she’s a creative strategist at a digital media agency and continues to connect with students on campus through MiddCORE, mentorship, and more. Nia looks forward to working with alums and students to continue fostering community on and off campus, especially with the Chicago chapter.