The board of trustees has a new face at the table.

UNA alumnus Marcus Maples will serve the remainder of John “Bunyan” Cole’s appointment, ending in 2019.

The trustees have been short one member since Cole died in March.

“I’m really excited about the opportunity to give back to the university that gave so much to me when I was here,” Maples said.

He said he can serve as a representative of students’ needs and concerns.

“Students today have a lot of the same concerns I had when I was a student, like affordability and being able to find a job,” Maples said. “As an alum(nus) of UNA, I can be a voice for the students on the board.”

He said as the only African American board member he is excited about contributing to campus diversity and seeing a diverse range of ideas come together as university growth continues.

“That’s what education is all about — trying to think more globally about issues,” he said.

Maples graduated from UNA in 2002, where he served as SGA President, Alpha Phi Alpha vice president and captain of the Mock Trials Team. He also received the Gregory K. Engle Memorial Scholarship and was named a Promising Alumnus.

He is currently an attorney for Sirote & Permutt law firm in Birmingham, Alabama.