Alumni association names Bonner executive director

Paula Bonner has been named executive director of the Wisconsin Alumni Association, a nonprofit group that serves 280,000 university alumni.

Paula Bonner

Bonner, WAA’s associate executive director, will take the new post Jan. 15, following the retirement of current executive director Gayle Langer, who has held the job since 1989.

Bonner joined the association in 1989 and also serves as a special assistant to the chancellor for university relations. Previously, she directed the women’s athletics program at UW–Madison.

“Paula Bonner has been a valued member of the University Relations Team, helping to connect UW–Madison with the people of Wisconsin and alumni around the country,” Chancellor David Ward says. “I am delighted to know her leadership is being recognized with this appointment.”

Bonner earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro, and a master’s of science degree from UW–Madison. From 1986-88, she co-hosted the Badger Women’s Sports Show, one of the country’s first radio sports shows dedicated to women’s athletics.

Nationally, Bonner has been a member of the Commission on Communications for the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and co-chaired the CASE District Five Conference alumni relations track. She is also the recipient of the first alumni relations fellowship from the Council of Alumni Association Executives (CAAE).

In the community, Bonner is a member of TEMPO and was a founding member of the city’s Business Forum, a professional business organization for women.

The elected president of the alumni association, Kathy Dwyer Southern of Baltimore, credits Bonner with efforts to diversify WAA’s financial base by increasing alumni involvement and membership.

“This will be a seamless transition, due to Ms. Bonner’s many years of campus leadership and her ability to recruit and motivate an impressive team of professional staff,” Southern adds.

WAA, a nonprofit organization founded in 1861, serves 280,000 alumni around the globe. WAA provides an array of services, including On Wisconsin, a quarterly alumni magazine; alumni lifelong learning programs; a career-mentoring program; and an extensive student relations program.