New face replacing outgoing Stacy Pearson on Boise's urban renewal board

An ambitious mission brought Gordon Jones came to Boise from Harvard University in 2015.

That year, he was hired to “start (a) new college focused on innovating new majors, certificates, and experiences that ensure students acquire knowledge and competencies required to meet emerging workplace needs and ensure the university value proposition is strong amidst industry disruption,” according to his resume.

That college is Boise State University’s College of Innovation and Design. Jones has since joined the board of directors for Trailhead, an entrepreneur-boosting organization in Boise. Now, he will have another major role as a member of Boise’s urban renewal agency, Capital City Development Corporation.

Jones will replace Stacy Pearson, BSU’s former vice president for finance and administration. Pearson stepped down from the renewal agency’s board in February. She is leaving Boise and is scheduled to take a similar job in March at Washington State University.

City spokesman Mike Journee said Mayor David Bieter, who sits on the renewal agency’s board and nominates all board members, wanted to maintain a BSU presence.

“And so he discussed it with (BSU President Bob) Kustra and in consultation they decided that Gordon would be a great fit,” city spokesman Mike Journee said.

The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to affirm Bieter’s nomination of Jones.

This story was originally published February 28, 2017 at 10:40 AM with the headline "New face replacing outgoing Stacy Pearson on Boise's urban renewal board."