Alumni director at UW to retire

Charles "Chuck" Blumenfeld, who will turn 65 in May, will retire at the end of that month as executive director of the University of Washington Alumni Association (UWAA). He has held the post since 2007, and has been affiliated with the association's board and staff for a decade.

Blumenfeld's ties to the UW date back six decades. A political-science major and president of the UW's student bar association, he became one of the first lawyers in Seattle to specialize in environmental law.

He served eight years on the UWAA board of trustees. His father, Irwin Blumenfeld, was the UW's primary spokesman for 34 years.

Paul Rucker, 39, will succeed Blumenfeld as Alumni Association executive director and associate vice president of alumni relations. Rucker attended the UW as an undergraduate and earned a master's degree from the UW's Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs. In 2004, he joined the UW as director of alumni relations for the UWAA, and two years ago was appointed assistant vice president for constituent relations.