Kenneth M. Jarin, a partner in the Philadelphia-based law firm Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll, has been re-elected to a fourth one-year term as chairman of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education’s (PASSHE) Board of Governors.

The Board also re-elected as its vice chairs C.R. “Chuck” Pennoni, chairman of the board of Pennoni Associates Inc. of Philadelphia, and Aaron A. Walton, senior vice president of corporate affairs for Highmark Inc. of Pittsburgh. Mr. Pennoni has served as vice chair for five years; Mr. Walton for one.

The 20-member Board of Governors has overall responsibility for planning and coordinating the development and operation of PASSHE, which is the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth, enrolling more than 110,000 students. The Board establishes broad fiscal, personnel and educational policies under which the 14 PASSHE Universities operate.

Mr. Jarin of Newtown represents both public and private employers in the areas of labor relations and contract negotiations. He has served as chief labor negotiator for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the City of Philadelphia. He is past Chairman of the Board of the Philadelphia Region of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and a member of the ADL’s National Executive Committee.

He serves as chairman of the Board of Directors of the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia and served on the National Council on the Arts, the governing board of the National Endowment for the Arts, from 1994 to 1998. Mr. Jarin earned his undergraduate degree from Duke University and his law degree from Temple University.

Mr. Jarin was appointed to the Board of Governors in 2005.

Mr. Pennoni of Bryn Mawr founded his consulting engineering firm in 1966. He also served for a year as president of Drexel University and is a member and past chair of the University’s Board of Trustees. He has both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in civil engineering and an honorary doctorate from Drexel. He has served as a guest speaker and lecturer at Drexel, Temple, Villanova and Widener universities, as well as at Texas A&M University, Purdue University, Swarthmore College, University of Pennsylvania and University of Pavia, Italy.

He has served on the engineering advisory boards of Widener University, University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University and on the advisory board of the Engineering Directorate of the National Science Foundation. He has been licensed as a professional engineer in 11 states, has been inducted into the National Academy of Engineering, and is past president of the Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology and a past president of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Mr. Pennoni was appointed to the Board of Governors in 2003. He also chairs the Board’s Finance, Administration and Facilities Committee.

Mr. Walton of Allison Park is responsible for administering Highmark’s public policy and social mission strategy and overseeing the departments of Community Affairs, Community Health and Strategic Health Initiatives, the Highmark Foundation and Gateway Health Plan. He serves on the Council of Trustees at California University of Pennsylvaniaand previously served as the chair from 1999-2003.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in speech pathology and audiology from California University of Pennsylvania and a master’s degree in public policy and management from Carnegie Mellon University.

Mr. Walton was appointed to the Board of Governors in 2005. He also chairs the Board’s Academic and Student Affairs Committee.

Other members of the Board of Governors are Rep. Matthew E. Baker of Wellsboro; Marie Conley Lammando, Steelton; Paul S. Dlugolecki, Mechanicsburg; Daniel P. Elby, York; Rep. Michael K. Hanna, Lock Haven; Sen. Vincent J. Hughes, Philadelphia; Kim E. Lyttle, Indiana; Joshua A. O’Brien, Harrisburg; Guido M. Pichini, Wyomissing; Gov. Edward G. Rendell; Sen. James J. Rhoades, Mahanoy City; Christine J. Toretti, Indiana; and Secretary of Education Gerald L. Zahorchak. There are four vacancies.

Now in its 25^th year, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education through its member universities offers degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. Approximately 405,000 PASSHE alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.

The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock, and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. PASSHE also operates branch campuses in Clearfield, Freeport, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg.