PASADENA, Calif.--Retired business executive and alumnus Fred A. Blum (PhD '68, physics) was recently named president of the Board of Associates of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech).
As president, Blum will oversee initiatives to increase support for Caltech and expand membership of the Associates.
Blum is chairman of Trilience Research, a nonprofit corporation that works with Caltech and other research scientists to promote the integration of neuroscience and brain research into the behavioral sciences such as economics and political science.
Prior to retiring, Blum was a successful entrepreneur in the $15 billion compound semiconductor industry. He retired in 2000 as CEO of Nitres, Inc., a leader in the development of blue, green, and white LEDs for auto, video sign, traffic light, and solid-state lighting applications. Blum also served as CEO of GigaBit Logic and vice president of Rockwell International during his career. He is the recipient of numerous honors and awards, has appeared on national television, and been featured in magazines such as BusinessWeek and Fortune.
Blum published over fifty scientific research articles while at Caltech, MIT Lincoln Laboratory, and Texas Instruments. He was named a Howard Hughes Fellow and National Science Foundation scholar while at Caltech.
A life member of the Caltech Alumni Association, Blum joined the Associates in 2002. In 2004, he joined the Associates Board of Directors, and has since served as its vice president and chair of the program committee.
Blum lives in Pasadena, California with his wife, Diane.
Founded in 1926, the Associates of the California Institute of Technology is a philanthropic organization for Caltech with over 1,400 memberships throughout the United States and abroad--a diverse cross section of entrepreneurs, community leaders, alumni, philanthropists, and faculty.
The Associates provides unrestricted support to Caltech through membership contributions. Additionally, individual members have contributed funds for over 37 campus buildings and 52 endowed professorships, and millions of dollars in support of fellowships and scholarships. The Associates play a vital role in fostering connections between Caltech's education, science, and engineering activities and community leaders in business, and philanthropy.
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Written by Martin Voss