Gretchen H. Milligan, AB ’73, MBA ’75

Gretchen H. Milligan, AB ’73, MBA ’75

Founder and Principal, Board Focus

Gretchen Milligan is the retired founder and principal of Board Focus, which advises independent school and community nonprofit boards. She worked to increase the effectiveness of nonprofit boards by sharpening their skills through board training, board retreats, governance analysis, and strategic planning.

Early in her career, she spent six years with Wells Fargo Bank in corporate and community lending. She held assignments in San Francisco, Orange County, and Ventura County.

Ms. Milligan has been a dedicated community volunteer. She is the past board chair of Cottage Health System in Santa Barbara. In addition, she sits on the boards of the Santa Barbara Foundation and the College Access Foundation of California. She is a past board member and board chair of Marlborough School in Los Angeles and Crane Country Day School in Santa Barbara.

Volunteering for Stanford has been a continuing interest since graduation. She has served on the boards of the Stanford Alumni Association, the Stanford Business School Alumni Association, the Stanford Business School Trust, the Stanford Parents’ Advisory Board, and Stanford Associates, which she chaired. She also has been involved in fundraising, including chairing both her undergraduate and graduate reunion campaigns. Currently, she serves on the Bing Overseas Studies Program Advisory Council and on the external advisory board of the Institute for Research in the Social Sciences. She was recognized for her work with the Stanford Associates Award in 1987 and 2003. She was an inaugural recipient of the Stanford Medal in 2006 and a recipient of the Gold Spike Award in 2013.

Ms. Milligan holds bachelor’s and MBA degrees from Stanford University.