Cleveland Fed Announces Appointments to Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh Boards and Federal Advisory Council

The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland announced the following appointments and elections to its main office and branch boards of directors and to the Federal Advisory Council, effective January 1, 2014.

Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland

Richard K. Smucker, chief executive officer, The J.M. Smucker Company, Orrville, Ohio, was reappointed chairman of the board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland for 2014. Smucker served as deputy chairman of the Cleveland Reserve Bank from 2010 to 2012, and as chairman in 2013.

Christopher M. Connor, chairman and chief executive officer, The Sherwin-Williams Company, Cleveland, Ohio, was reappointed to a second term as a director, and reappointed deputy chairman of the board for 2014. Connor has served as a director since 2011 and as deputy chairman since 2013.

Kevin T. Kabat, vice chairman and chief executive officer, Fifth Third Bancorp, Cincinnati, Ohio, was elected a director.

Hal Keller, president, Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing, Columbus, Ohio, was reelected to a second term as a director.

Cincinnati Branch

Charles Brown, vice president and secretary, Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing, North America, Inc., Erlanger, Kentucky, was appointed chairman of the board of the Cincinnati Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland for 2014. Brown has served as a director since 2013.

Austin W. Keyser, Midwest senior field representative, AFL-CIO, Columbus, Ohio, was reappointed to a second term as a director.

Valarie L. Sheppard, senior vice president, comptroller, and treasurer, The Procter & Gamble Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, was appointed as a director.

Pittsburgh Branch

Dawne S. Hickton, vice chair, president, and chief executive officer, RTI International Metals, Inc., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was appointed chair of the board of directors of the Pittsburgh Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland for 2014. Hickton has served as a director since 2013.

Robert P. Oeler, president and chief executive officer, Dollar Bank, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was appointed as a director.

Doris Carson Williams, president and chief executive officer, African American Chamber of Commerce of Western Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was appointed as a director.

Federal Advisory Council

Paul G. Greig, chairman, president, and chief executive officer, FirstMerit Corporation, Akron, Ohio, was appointed to a one-year term as the Fourth Federal Reserve District's representative on the Federal Advisory Council. Greig served as a director of the Bank from 2011 to 2013.

The Federal Advisory Council is composed of representatives of the banking industry from each of the 12 Federal Reserve Districts. The Council consults with and advises the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System on general business conditions and issues related to the financial services industry.

Reserve Bank Directors

Each Reserve Bank's main office has a nine-member board of directors. Three directors are elected by and representative of the member banks in each Federal Reserve District. The other six directors represent the general public, with due, but not exclusive, consideration to the interests of agriculture, commerce, industry, services, labor, and consumers. Of the six, three are elected by member banks and three are appointed by the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors in Washington, D.C.

Main office directors' responsibilities include making recommendations to the Board of Governors regarding the Federal Reserve's discount rate on primary credit; providing information about regional business conditions; and overseeing the Bank's budget and finances.

Each Reserve Bank branch has a five- or seven-member board of directors whose members provide input regarding local business conditions and their respective industries. They also help to identify opportunities that connect the Federal Reserve to the general public.

For a complete list of the members of the boards of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland and its branches, click here.

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, 513.218.1892