College of Communication Grad to Receive Distinguished Alumnus Award

AUSTIN, Texas—Sept. 22, 2009—College of Communication alumnus Darren Walker (BS ’82, JD ’86), vice president of the Rockefeller Foundation in New York, will be recognized by the Texas Exes at their Distinguished Alumnus Awards Oct. 9 in Austin.

The award, created in 1958, recognizes annually up to six graduates or former students of The University of Texas at Austin who have distinguished themselves professionally and through service to the university. The Distinguished Alumnus Award is the highest award given by the Texas Exes.

Walker grew up in Baytown, Texas, where he went to Ross Sterling High School. He received bachelor’s degrees in government and speech communication from The University of Texas at Austin in 1982 and a law degree from the university in 1986. He was named one of 10 Dean’s Distinguished Graduates and was awarded Outstanding Graduate by the Law Alumni Association. Walker began his career in 1986 at the international law firm of Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton. He then joined the Union Bank of Switzerland, where he spent seven years in the capital markets division.

Walker left Wall Street to become the chief operating officer for the Abyssinian Development Corporation, a community development organization in Harlem. During his time there, he was responsible for the development of more than 1,000 units of housing for low- and moderate-income residents; two of Harlem’s largest privately financed commercial projects in more than 30 years; and the first public school ever built in New York City by a community organization.

In 2002 Walker joined the Rockefeller Foundation. He was promoted to vice president in 2006, where he oversees implementation of the organization’s grant making initiatives in the United States and internationally. He is a member of the boards of the New York City Ballet, the Arcus Foundation, Friends of the High Line and the Foundation for Art and Preservation in the Embassies.

Five other recipients will be honored at the event in addition to Walker, including: Vice Admiral Vivien Crea, former vice commandant and chief operating officer of the United States Coast Guard; James Dick, a renowned concert pianist who performs with symphonies worldwide; Lee Godfrey, co-managing partner of Susman Godfrey LLP; Jack Crosby, an international telecommunications pioneer and philanthropist; and The Honorable Edward C. Prado, a distinguished federal judge in San Antonio with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The Texas Exes, the alumni association for The University of Texas, was founded in 1885. The mission of the Texas Exes is to unite, inform and involve alumni and friends for the purpose of promoting, protecting and preserving The University of Texas.

Today there are around 90,000 members whom the association strives to connect to each other and to the past, present, and future of the university through career counseling, travel, reunions, continuing education, fellowship, legislative advocacy in support of higher education, and The Alcalde magazine. For more information on Texas Exes or to become a member, please visit www.TexasExes.org.

###

Note to Editor: Recipient photo and bio is available upon request.
Contact:
Erin Huddleston, Texas Exes
512-471-3805