BLOOMINGTON — Shaping the future governance of the state’s flagship university, Indiana Governor Mike Braun announced three new executive appointments to the Indiana University Board of Trustees.
The selections were unveiled in a press release following the expiration of terms for three sitting board members. The newly appointed trustees are Steve Henke of Hamilton County, Matthew Ferguson of Atlanta, and Mel Raines of Marion County.
All three appointees are proud Indiana University alumni. Their terms are effective immediately and will extend through June 30, 2029. The trio will be officially sworn in during the next formal board meeting on August 14, 2026.
The incoming trustees bring extensive corporate, legal, and operational backgrounds to the nine-person governing body:
Steve Henke serves as the CEO of Henke Development Group, a prominent real estate development firm based in Zionsville, known for major residential, commercial, and sports complexes across Indiana. Before his extensive real estate career, Henke practiced law for more than 40 years. He already holds a seat on the IU Inc. Board of Directors and will transition to represent the Board of Trustees on that specialized sub-board.
Matthew Ferguson is the former CEO and current executive chairman of CareerBuilder.com, which previously grew into the nation’s largest online employment marketplace. He graduated from IU in 1989 with a Bachelor of Arts in political science before earning an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a Juris Doctor from the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law.
Mel Raines serves as the CEO of Pacers Sports & Entertainment, making history in 2024 as the first woman to lead the organization. Beyond her executive leadership of Indiana’s premier basketball franchises, Raines has deep roots in national politics, having served as an Assistant to Vice President Dick Cheney and operational architect for six Republican National Conventions.
Departing Board Members and Term Cap Questions
The three incoming appointees will fill seats vacated by W. Quinn Buckner, J. Timothy Morris, and Isaac P. Torres, whose terms concluded at the end of June.
Buckner has served since 2016 and chaired the compensation committee. Morris was appointed in 2023 and chaired the facilities committee. Torres was appointed in 2023 and is an MBA alumnus of IU South Bend.
The departure of Buckner ends a decade of prominent board service. Buckner was granted a special one-year term extension by Gov. Braun last year, allowing him to complete a fourth consecutive term. This extension occurred despite a state budget bill provision limiting university trustees to a maximum of three terms. Because that legislation lacked explicit guidance on whether the cap applied to currently sitting trustees, Buckner was able to finish out his term as the head of the board’s compensation committee.
While Morris leaves the primary Board of Trustees, university officials confirmed he will remain integrated within the university’s development infrastructure, stepping into a role on the IU Inc. board similar to the position Henke is leaving.
The Indiana University Board of Trustees is structured with eight three-year term slots alongside a single, specialized one-year seat designated for an active student.
Isaac White, a rising senior at IU Indianapolis, officially completed his one-year term as the student trustee on June 30. Notably, the governor’s latest press releases made no mention of a successor or a renewal for the student position.
Despite White’s term technically expiring, the official university trustees website continues to list him as an active member of the board while scrubbing the data of the other three departed members.
Addressing the administrative discrepancy, the governor’s press secretary, Griffin Reid, clarified that there is no formal update regarding a new student appointment at this time. However, Reid noted that under state guidelines, White “can continue to serve in an expired term capacity until reappointed or replaced,” preventing a student vacancy when the board reconvenes in August.
