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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary


For Immediate Release November 30, 2000

PRESIDENT CLINTON NAMES TWO TO THE CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS FELLOWSHIP

FOUNDATION

The President today announced his intent to appoint Arun Bhumitra and John Kuhnle as members of the Board of Trustees of the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation.

Mr. Arun Bhumitra, of Rolling Hills, California, is the Founder and CEO of Arjay Telecom. Earlier in his career, he was a Project Engineer with Northrop Grumman and an Associate Professor of Manufacturing Engineer Tool Design at UCLA. Mr. Bhumitra is a member of a number of boards and committees including the International Trade Administration for the U.S. Department of Commerce, the National Advisory Council for the Small Business Administration, the Los Angeles Sheriff's Advisory Council, the Tax Advisory Committee for the State of California, and the Los Angeles County Energy Commission. In 1996 and 1997 he was a Member of a Trade Delegation from the U.S. Department of Commerce to Ireland. Mr. Bhumitra is a Sponsor of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation and a Presenter at The Hearts & Hands for the Handicapped Show. A native of India, Mr. Bhumitra received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Nagpur University in India and an M.B.A. from Dowling College in New York.

Dr. John H. Kuhnle, of Washington, D.C., is Managing Director -- Education Practice with Korn/Ferry International. Prior to joining Korn/Ferry, he was a partner in the consulting firm of Snelling Kolb & Kuhnle, Vice President of the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education and an executive with Fannie Mae. Additionally, Dr. Kuhnle has served on the faculties of the Federal City College, the University of Maryland, Pennsylvania State University and Vanderbilt University, as well as teaching in countries such as England, France and Turkey. Dr. Kuhnle is a Director of the American Institute for Foreign Study Foundation and a Trustee of the American International University in London, England. Dr. Kuhnle received a B.A. from Centre College, an M.A. from the University of Kentucky and a Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University. He also earned an Honours Certificate from the University of Edinburgh.

The Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation was created to encourage and support research, study and labor designed to produce new discoveries in all fields of endeavor for the benefit of humankind. The Board of Trustees awards fellowships to outstanding individuals, known as Columbus Scholars, to encourage such new discoveries. The Board has established a three-tiered "Frontiers of Discovery-Past, Present and Future" programs. Fellowships of $100,000 are awarded in the "Past" and "Present" programs, and the "Future" program supports and encourages innovations by America's youth.

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