CHARLOTTE – This week, Discovery Place appointed five new board members to the Museums’ Board of Trustees and announced the full slate of officers for 2017-18.

New members joining the Board of Trustees include:

• Melissa Bodford, Co-Founder, Chairman & CEO at uBack, Inc
• Paul Camuti, SVP, Innovation & Chief Technology Officer at Ingersoll Rand
• Jose Costa, Group President at Driven Brands, Inc.
• Douglas Esamann, EVP, Energy Solution & President, Midwest & Florida Reg. at Duke Energy
• Kerri Mast, SVP, Wealth Planner & Reg. Trust Head at Brown Brothers Harriman

“We are pleased to welcome such highly-qualified individuals to join our Board. This year has many exciting initiatives in-store across the organization. I am confident that the enthusiasm, leadership and professional commitment of this group will bring valued support to furthering our mission of bringing quality STEM education to our communities,” said president and CEO of Discovery Place, Catherine Wilson Horne.

The newest members to the Board of Trustees will serve a three-year term until 2020.

Also announced was the new Chairman of the Board, Luther Lockwood of MBL Advisors. He is joined by new board officers Vice Chairman for Internal Affairs Laura Bowles of Movement Mortgage; Vice Chairman for External Affairs Martin Foley of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP; Secretary Joan Lorden, Ph.D. of UNC Charlotte; and Past Chairman Mark McGoldrick.

Each Discovery Place trustee serves on at least one standing board committee. Trustees approve organizational policies, review operational goals, advocate for the organization, support organization staff and contribute financially to the Museums’ success. They also ensure that adequate financial and other necessary support is made available through a broad variety of sources in order to sustain the programs and other services of the organization. All officers will serve terms through June 2018. The new board and leadership began their term on July 1.

About Discovery Place

One of the top hands-on science museums in the nation, Discovery Place provides ever-changing, entertaining facilities that engage people in the active exploration of science, technology and nature. Discovery Place provides STEM education to the Carolinas through four distinct museum experiences at Discovery Place Science, Discovery Place Nature and Discovery Place Kids, interactive educational programming, professional development training and community outreach initiatives.

For more information about Discovery Place, call 704.372.6261 x300, visit discoveryplace.org or connect with Discovery Place on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. Discovery Place is supported, in part, with funding from the Arts & Science Council.