Gov. Gregoire appoints wine industry leader to WSU Board of Regents

For Immediate Release: February 11, 2009

OLYMPIA � Governor Chris Gregoire today announced the appointment of Chateau Ste. Michelle Wine Estates President and CEO Ted Baseler to the Board of Regents of Washington State University.

�I am excited to welcome Ted back to the WSU Board of Regents,� Gregoire said. �Ted�s extensive business and agriculture background and his commitment to higher education have made him a perfect fit for this board. I am confident he will help maintain our world- class higher education system during these tough economic times.�

Gregoire first appointed Baseler to the board in 2006. A year later, Baseler stepped down because of business commitments.

"I am honored to be reappointed to the Board of Regents and plan to utilize my business experience to help the University during these challenging times,� Baseler said. �I'm looking forward to supporting President Floyd in his quest to take WSU to a successful future."

Baseler received his Bachelor of Arts in communications from Washington State University in 1976. Since then, Ted has been committed to improving the university. He served on the WSU Foundation Board of Trustees for 10 years, and has been recognized with the Alumni Achievement Award and the WSU Foundation Outstanding Service Award. He worked with the state Legislature to secure funding to develop a world class Enology and Viticulture program at WSU. Additionally, he founded the Chateau Ste. Michelle Diversity Scholarship program, which has raised more than $2 million to support college-bound minority students.

Baseler joined Chateau Ste. Michelle Wine Estates in 1984 as the director of marketing and was named president and CEO in January of 2001. The company is the oldest wine company in Washington state and is now among the 10 largest wine companies in the U.S.

Prior to joining Chateau Ste. Michelle, Baseler worked as an account executive with the J. Walter Thompson advertising agency and as group management supervisor with Ogilvy & Mather in its Cole and Weber division. He was named one of the top marketing professionals in the country by Advertising Age.

Baseler resides in Bellevue with his wife JoAnne, also a WSU graduate.