MEMPHIS, Tenn., May 22, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Education Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EDR) today announced that stockholders elected Wendell W. Weakley, who is president and chief executive officer of the University of Mississippi Foundation, as a new member of the company's board of directors.
At the 2007 annual meeting, stockholders also re-elected independent directors Monte J. Barrow, William J. Cahill, III and Dr. John L. Ford as well as board chairman Paul O. Bower. Each director was elected to serve until the company's 2008 annual meeting or until his successor has been duly elected and qualified.
Mr. Weakley joins the board after a 30-year career in public accounting with PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he served as an audit partner for the firm's public clients in manufacturing, distribution and retailing; led offices and practice groups in Memphis, Dallas, Tampa and internationally; and served as a regional risk management partner. Mr. Weakley, who is a Certified Public Accountant, serves as chair of the board's audit committee.
Mr. Barrow is a private investor and independent business owner, who served for more than 20 years as the chief financial officer of MS Carriers, Inc., a publicly traded trucking transportation company, before its August 2002 sale to Swift Transportation Company, Inc.
Mr. Bower is also president and chief executive officer of Education Realty Trust, having joined its predecessor company in 1969 and served in various management assignments until he was appointed president and chief executive officer in January 1998.
Mr. Cahill is corporate vice president of human resources for FedEx Corporation, where he is responsible for executive compensation, succession planning, health-care strategy, retirement investment, employment, legal and other human resources functions.
Dr. Ford is senior vice president and dean of campus life at Emory University, where he oversees student housing and 17 other departments, following a distinguished career that has included administrative, academic and research positions at Cornell University, the University of Exeter in England, the University of British Columbia in Canada, the Dokkyo University Medical School in Japan, Johns Hopkins University and the University of Chicago.
Stockholders also ratified the selection of Deloitte & Touche LLP as the independent registered public accounting firm for Education Realty Trust for the 2007 fiscal year.
About Education Realty Trust
Education Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:EDR) is a self-administered, self-managed real estate investment trust that owns, develops and manages high-quality student housing communities throughout the U.S. Led by a team with more than 190 years of shared industry experience, Education Realty Trust is one of America's largest owners and operators of collegiate student housing. Its portfolio includes 41,785 beds at 68 communities in 21 states. For more information, please visit the company's Web site at www.educationrealty.com.
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Statements about the company's business that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements." Forward-looking statements are based on current expectations. You should not rely on our forward-looking statements because the matters they describe are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause the company's future results, performance or achievements to differ significantly from the results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Such risks are set forth under the captions "Item 1A. Risk Factors" and "Forward-Looking Statements" in our annual report on Form 10-K and under the caption "Item 2. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" (or similar captions) in our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and as described in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and EDR undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.