Golden Key International Honour Society News

Golden Key Names John W. Mitchell as the Society's New Chief Executive Officer

ATLANTA, July 21 PRNewswire — Golden Key International Honour Society's Board of Directors recently named John W. Mitchell to serve as the Society's Chief Executive Officer effective July 14, 2008.

Since 2003, John W. Mitchell served as director and a general manager at privately held Bose Corporation based in Framingham, Massachusetts. His team unveiled the award-winning "Bose Media System" in the Ferrari 612 Scaglietti at the 2007 Geneva International Auto Show. Previously, he filled several roles in his 11-year tenure at Alpine Electronics of America, Inc., including Manager of Software Engineering, Director of IT, and then Head of Strategy. Alpine is a manufacturer and distributor of high-quality audio, video and navigation electronics equipment.

Bradford Rainey, Golden Key's Board Chair, said that the Golden Key Board of Directors unanimously selected Mitchell based on his track record of leading a complex organization, as well as his strong executive and personal qualities.

"Our search for a new leader to build on and sustain our recent successes has been focused and thorough," said Rainey. "A screening team led by Bill York and consisting of several other board members reviewed over 130 resumes submitted by applicants for the job and conducted initial interviews with over 25 individuals. The screening team selected 6 finalists who were interviewed by a group consisting of most of the Board of Directors. The strongest candidates were selected as finalists. John was our final and first choice after interviews with the 6 finalists."

"John came to our attention because of his strong execution skills and his proven ability to lead top-performing teams. He has demonstrated an unbroken record of success beginning with his service as an officer of the Golden Key chapter at Brigham Young University," Rainey continues. "At the outset of the search process, the board agreed upon a set of skills and competencies that the ideal candidate would possess. We believe that John has the experience and attributes that we identified as vital for the CEO of Golden Key."

John W. Mitchell comments, "Golden Key is a well-respected student and career organization, both on-campus and off. The organization is filled with outstanding talent, including those on staff, the volunteer advisors and student leaders. It's in an enviable position, as no honor society provides more tangible benefit to student members than Golden Key. It's a great honor to join its leadership team and have the opportunity to build on its success."

Many Golden Key members, student leaders and advisors will have the opportunity to meet Mitchell at the 2008 International Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana from July 31 to August 3.

Mitchell succeeds Alexander D. Perwich II, a 6-year Golden Key veteran, who has been Chief Executive Officer since 2002. Perwich will remain at Golden Key through July 31, 2008 to assist with the transition.

About John W. Mitchell

A graduate of Brigham Young University (BYU), John W. Mitchell received his Bachelor of Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering. At BYU, he served as the Golden Key Chapter Treasurer and then as Chapter President. Mr. Mitchell later earned a Master's degree in Business Administration from the Pepperdine Graziadio School of Business and Management executive program.

Mr. Mitchell began his engineering career at General Electric in the aerospace industry. He engineered redundant "fly-by-wire" systems and software code generation programs.

He joined Alpine Electronics in 1992 and became a founding member of its research company in 1994. This team introduced navigation (GPS) systems to the US market launching initially in Acura vehicles. He filled several roles in his 11-year tenure at Alpine including Manager of Software Engineering, Director of IT, and then Head of Strategy. He received the President's Award in 2002 for re-establishing a JD Power #1 rating for their navigation systems while utilizing 5% of the proposed budget.

In 2003, Mr. Mitchell was recruited to the Bose Corporation where he acted as director and a general manager of a new product division for the company. This effort was the largest product development initiative ever undertaken by Bose. He was responsible for strategic management, full-cycle product development, analyzing new businesses and alliances, and international business with automotive customer and supplier executives. Mr. Mitchell managed complex sales, engineering, HR, legal, marketing, financial and operational issues for this new division. The team launched its "Bose Media System" at the 2007 Geneva International Auto Show and received the International Telematics Update Product Award that same year.

He was a speaker at SAE's Digital Car Conference and has presented to executives and press around the globe. He served on industry committees including ISO and Navigation User Group committees. Mr. Mitchell holds a US patent for navigation systems and speaks Japanese.

Mr. Mitchell is active in the community in various ways, but nearly always centered on youth programs like Boy Scouts, Venture scouts, church Young Men and Women programs, and YMCA fundraising committees. Mr. Mitchell has been married for over 15 years and has five children: four sons and one daughter.

About Golden Key

Golden Key International Honour Society, established in 1977, is the world's premier collegiate honor society, with over 1.7 million student and alumni members. The Society has more than 360 campus-based chapters worldwide, including 281 in the United States, 17 in Canada and 62 others throughout the world in Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. Membership into the Society is by invitation only. The Society is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies (ACHS), which reports that Golden Key offers its members more tangible benefits than any other honor society in the United States.

Golden Key provides academic recognition to top performing undergraduate and graduate students. Members participate in leadership development opportunities, community service and career networking, and are eligible for member-exclusive scholarships. Faculty advisors and student leadership are all volunteers who work hard to support Golden Key's mission: to enable members to realize their potential.

Golden Key recognizes and encourages scholastic achievement and excellence among college and university students from all academic disciplines. The Society awards its members over $400,000 (USD) annually through numerous scholarship and award programs. Members are also connected to exclusive career opportunities and assistance through Golden Key's partnerships with major corporations and graduate programs. The Society provides campus and community service opportunities that enable personal growth and leadership development, as well as collaborating with university faculty and administrators to develop and maintain high standards of education.

Along with ACHS, the Society maintains active memberships in several organizations including:

— National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) — National Scholarship Providers Association (NSPA) — American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) — Association of International Educators — American Council on Education — Georgia Center for Non-Profits — Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce

For more information about Golden Key, please visit http://www.goldenkey.org.

Contact: Jonathan Blaine, Chief Marketing Officer Golden Key International Honour Society Phone: 678-420-6735 Email: jblaine@goldenkey.org

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SOURCE Golden Key International Honour Society

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