EDITOR’S NOTE:

Schweitzer

Due to unforeseen circumstances announced June 24, Cleveland Federal Reserve President Sandra Pianalto is unable to attend the June 28 luncheon and is sending Senior Vice President Mark E. Schweitzer to address the University Economics Club in her place. He leads the Bank’s research department, setting the direction for economic research, selecting and developing staff, and briefing the Bank president prior to meetings of the Federal Open Market Committee of the Federal Reserve System. Dr. Schweitzer’s own research has focused on the macroeconomic impact of labor market developments and the identification of factors contributing to regional economic growth.

Schweitzer joined the Bank in 1992 as an economist. From 2000 to 2002, he served as a senior economist at the Bank of England. He returned to the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, and in 2004 was promoted to assistant vice president and director of the Regional Economic Issues Program. In 2007, he was appointed vice president and branch executive of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s Denver Branch. He was named to his current position in 2008.

An economics graduate of the University of Chicago, he holds both a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in economics from the University of California at Los Angeles. A native of Seattle, Wash., he lives in Shaker Heights, Ohio, is married and has two daughters and a son.

ORIGINAL PRESS RELEASE ANNOUNCING ECONOMICS CLUB LUNCHEON AND SPEAKER:

Sandra Pianalto, president and chief executive of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, will address the University Economics Club at noon, Friday, June 28, at River City Restaurant, 1400 Main St. Open to the public, the event is cosponsored by Wheeling Area Chamber of Commerce and the Center for Economic Philosophy at West Liberty University. She will provide an economic update giving particular attention to the labor markets and focus on the Wheeling area.

As president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, Pianalto has both national and local leadership responsibilities. She participates in the formulation of U.S. monetary policy, and she oversees 950 employees in Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh who conduct economic research, supervise financial institutions, and provide payment services to commercial banks and the U.S. government.

Pianalto joined the Bank in 1983 as an economist in the Research Department. She was appointed assistant vice president of public affairs in 1984, vice president and secretary to the board of directors in 1988, and first vice president and chief operating officer in 1993. She assumed her position as president in 2003.

Before joining the Bank, Pianalto was an economist at the Federal Reserve Board of Governors and served on the staff of the Budget Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Pianalto is active in the Fourth Federal Reserve District’s civic community. She is vice chair of the board of University Hospitals and serves as a past chair and a life director of the board of United Way of Greater Cleveland. Pianalto also serves as an advisory trustee for The University of Akron. She serves on the boards of a number of other community organizations, including The Cleveland Foundation, Greater Cleveland Partnership, Team Northeast Ohio (Team NEO), and College Now Greater Cleveland.

She earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from The University of Akron and a master’s in economics from The George Washington University. She is a graduate of the Advanced Management Program at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and holds honorary degrees from The University of Akron, Baldwin-Wallace College, Cleveland State University John Carroll University, Kent State University, Notre Dame College, Ursuline College and The University of Toledo.

Founded in 2009, the BB&T Center for Economic Philosophy at West Liberty University seeks to engage faculty, students and the public in serious and sustained examination of the free market. In recent years BB&T’s charitable foundation awarded grants to dozens of colleges and universities to support teaching about capitalism.

For more information on this event or to RSVP for the buffet lunch ($15 cash or check only), payable at the door, please call 304-336-8301 or email jknierim@westliberty.edu.