Donna Baker Named GIA President

Donna M. Baker, who was appointed acting president of the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) in May following the resignation of then-president William Boyajian, has been made the permanent president of the organization.

The decision was announced on November 19, following a GIA Board of Governors’ meeting.

“We screened and interviewed a broad range of very accomplished executives from a variety of fields before reaching our final decision,” GIA Chairman Ralph Destino, who lead the search for the new president, said in a statement. “Our unanimous conclusion was that Donna Baker was the best of the best. Her knowledge of the gem and jewelry industry, and her understanding of the public-benefit, nonprofit role that defines the GIA’s mission will serve us well going forward.”

Prior to her appointment as acting president, Baker had been GIA’s vice president and general counsel. Although the GIA did not say so publicly, it was widely assumed in the industry that Boyajian’s resignation was related to a scandal over falsified diamond grading reports at the GIA’s New York laboratory.

We have every confidence in [Baker’s] ability to execute the Institute’s commitment to achieve greater transparency, more accountability, a stronger level of consumer focus, and a continued improvement in all our business processes,” said Helene Fortunoff, GIA board chairman.

Posted: November 20, 2006

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