Villanova University announced it has elected four new members to its Board of Trustees, adding The Very Rev. Barnaby Johns, OSA, Kristin E. Reed, David K. “Duke” Reyes and Robert F. Tyson to the University’s 38-member governing board. The appointments took effect Jan. 1.
Villanova President the Rev. Peter M. Donohue, OSA, PhD, said the new trustees reflect the University’s Augustinian values and bring a range of leadership experience spanning faith-based service, philanthropy, global business and law.
Barnaby Johns currently serves as Prior Provincial of the Augustinian Province of St. Augustine in California. Raised in Worcestershire, England, he attended The Oratory School in Oxfordshire and later pursued studies in history before building an international early-career path that included a gap year in Pakistan and three years teaching English in Osaka, Japan. He was introduced to Augustinian community life after meeting the Rev. Tom Purcell, OSA, during a retreat in Nagasaki in 1997.
Johns worked in communications in London from 2000 to 2004, then began formation with the British Province, living and studying in multiple locations including Edinburgh, Racine, London and Rome. He completed a pastoral year in San Diego and later taught at St. Augustine High School in San Diego and Villanova Preparatory School in Ojai, California. He was solemnly professed in 2015 and ordained in 2020, and was elected Prior Provincial in 2024. His academic credentials include a bachelor’s degree in history from Anglia University in Cambridge, a master’s degree in Scripture from the University of St. Andrews and a master’s degree in Catholic School Leadership from the University of San Francisco.
Kristin E. Reed ’88 CLAS joins the board with a background in philanthropic leadership and community-based fundraising. She began her career in sales and marketing in New York City before moving to the Boston area and later becoming active in commercial real estate, taking on oversight of her family’s properties in 2006.
Reed served on the board of the Boys & Girls Club of Newport County from 2008 to 2018 and became board president from 2018 to 2020. In 2022, she chaired the organization’s first capital campaign, which raised $17 million in private philanthropy. She also served as a trustee of St. Sebastian’s School from 2012 to 2018, focusing on development initiatives, and held leadership roles with the Westwood Educational Foundation, including board president. At Villanova, she previously served on the President’s Advisory Council and was New England regional co-chair for the University’s comprehensive campaign, For the Greater Great.
David K. “Duke” Reyes ’79 VSB has been elected to the board as Chief Executive Officer of Reyes Holdings, LLC, a global food and beverage production and distribution company with operations across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Australia and Asia Pacific. The company’s primary business units include Reyes Beverage Group, the Martin-Brower Company, LLC, and Reyes Coca-Cola Bottling, and it also manages transportation and logistics, equipment leasing and real estate development.
Reyes has served on several civic and educational boards, including the University of Chicago Medical Center, Georgetown University School of Business, Georgetown University, the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, Los Angeles YMCA, Chicago Big Shoulders Fund and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Chicago. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Villanova in 1979 and a JD from Georgetown University in 1982.
Robert F. Tyson ’86 VSB, ’89 JD, a trial lawyer and founding partner of Tyson & Mendes, joins the board with experience in litigation, legal entrepreneurship and alumni engagement. Tyson & Mendes is a national law firm with more than 280 attorneys. Tyson has tried catastrophic injury, wrongful death and other high-exposure jury trials for more than 35 years and is known for his work in Howell v. Hamilton Meats, a case he argued and won before the California Supreme Court.
Tyson is also a bestselling author, a co-founder of the insurtech company Schaefer City Technologies and a co-founder of Apex Defense Consulting. He has served as president of the San Diego chapter of the Villanova University Alumni Association and as a member of Villanova’s President’s Advisory Council. He is a member of the Century Club of San Diego, the nonprofit that organizes the annual PGA Tour event held at Torrey Pines.
Villanova, founded in 1842, is a Catholic university rooted in the Augustinian intellectual tradition. The University serves more than 10,000 undergraduate, graduate and law students across six colleges, including the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Villanova School of Business, College of Engineering, M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing, College of Professional Studies and the Charles Widger School of Law.
KEY QUOTE:
“Father Barnaby, Kristin, Duke and Bob exemplify the spirit of servant leadership at the heart of Villanova’s Augustinian mission. Each brings a unique perspective shaped by faith, professional excellence and a deep commitment to education and community. I am grateful for their willingness to serve and look forward to the insight and guidance they will bring to the Board as we build on Villanova’s momentum and plan for the future.”
Rev. Peter M. Donohue, OSA, PhD, President, Villanova University
