A 1980 legal studies graduate of UMass Amherst, Victor Woolridge has served on the UMass Board of Trustees in various leadership positions since 2009. In his service as a trustee and former chairman of the 22-member UMass board, he has emphasized its firm commitment to improving access and affordability and preserving the high-quality academic programs that define the University of Massachusetts.
In 2019, Governor Charlie Baker appointed Mr. Woolridge as Chairman of the UMass Building Authority, which plans and finances new construction and renovation of facilities on UMass campuses.
Mr. Woolridge is an independent director who retired as Managing Director at Barings Real Estate Advisers LLC in 2021. At Barings, he was responsible for coordinating the financing of assets and portfolios in the firm’s broader equity real estate portfolio, including execution of derivatives to manage interest rate risk.
Mr. Woolridge is a lifelong resident of Springfield, Massachusetts who has built strong relationships across the Commonwealth as a business and civic leader. He has served as the chairman of the Springfield Chamber of Commerce and currently serves on the boards of UMass Global, Owl Rock Capital Corporation, Baystate Health, Fallon Health, and the Springfield Basketball Hall of Fame. He is a current investment committee member of the Springfield Venture Fund and Life Initiative investment committee which finances community-based non-profit entities across Massachusetts.