Cleveland Fed Names Velimesis and Starks to Lead Office of Minority and Women Inclusion

Peggy Velimesis has been appointed director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland's newly established Office of Minority and Women Inclusion (OMWI). A senior vice president, Velimesis also serves as the Bank's chief of staff and Equal Employment Opportunity officer, and oversees the Bank's Human Resources and Executive Information functions. Prior to joining the Bank in 1996, Velimesis was vice president of human resources for Meridia Health System.

Velimesis is a member of the Society of Human Resource Management, and serves on the Human Resources Advisory Committee of United Way. A Cleveland native, she holds bachelor's and master's degrees from Cleveland State University.

Assistant Vice President Diana Starks has also joined the Bank's Office of Minority and Women Inclusion (OMWI). Starks has led the Bank's diversity and inclusion efforts since 2007 and serves as the Bank's deputy Equal Employment Opportunity officer.

Starks joined the Bank in 1974. She held positions of increasing responsibility in the Securities/Fiscal and Check Departments prior to her appointment as assistant vice president of Cleveland Check Operations in 2003. In 2005, she assumed responsibility for executive support to the Bank’s president and first vice president, and she assumed her current position in 2007.

Starks serves on the board of The Intergenerational School and on the Human Resource Committee for Breakthrough Charter Schools. She also serves on the board of the Waiting Child Fund. A native Clevelander, Starks holds a bachelor's degree from Hiram College, and masters degrees from Cleveland State University and the University of Phoenix.

Office of Minority and Women Inclusion (OMWI)

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act requires that diversity and inclusion offices be established at certain federal agencies, including the Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Reserve Banks. The offices will build on the Federal Reserve System's long-standing efforts to promote equal employment opportunity and diversity and will continue to work to foster diversity in procurement, with a focus on minority-owned and women-owned businesses.

Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland

The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland is one of 12 regional Reserve Banks that along with the Board of Governors in Washington DC comprise the Federal Reserve System. Part of the US central bank, the Cleveland Fed participates in the formulation of our nation’s monetary policy, supervises banking organizations, provides payment and other services to financial institutions and to the US Treasury, and performs many activities that support Federal Reserve operations System-wide. In addition, the Bank supports the well-being of communities across the Fourth Federal Reserve District through a wide array of research, outreach, and educational activities.

The Cleveland Fed, with branches in Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, serves an area that comprises Ohio, western Pennsylvania, eastern Kentucky, and the northern panhandle of West Virginia.

Media contact

Doug Campbell, doug.campbell@clev.frb.org, 513.455.4479