One New and Three Returning Members Join U of R Board of Trustees

Four alumni joined the University of Redlands Board of Trustees with the start of the institution’s 2015-16 fiscal year. The University welcomes new member Kevin T. Knight ’77 and returning members Richard “Dick” Fisher ’65, Tom Gilmer ’62 & ’66, and Leland Launer, Jr. 77. Kevin Knight ‘77 received his bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Redlands. He also holds an MBA from the University of Colorado. Kevin is an experienced payments and loyalty programs executive with profit and non-profit board experience, and vast expertise working with bank regulators. In March 2014, after more than 30 years in the credit industry, Kevin began his own firm, KT Knight Consulting, LLP, where he helps clients translate new products/customer solutions into market applications and programs that grow retail sales. In 2012, he joined Visa, Inc. where he headed up credit and debit card products for North America. Prior to Visa, he served as Nordstrom’s executive vice president and president of the credit division. During his 14-year tenure, he served in several executive roles and built a customer loyalty program and supporting credit/debit payment products that generated best-in-class incremental sales. Kevin has served as a member of the Board of Regents at Loyola Marymount University and as co-chair of the Parent’s Council of that university. Tom Gilmer ’62, ‘66 received his bachelor's degree from the University of Redlands and also holds a master's in education from the university. Following graduation, he taught and coached in an early career that included an appointment as track and field coach at Fullerton College. In 1982, Tom joined Lee and Associates as a founding partner. A member of the Lee and Associates President's Club since 1983, he has been honored on six separate occasions as the company's broker of the year. Previously, Tom worked at Ashwill-Burke and also owned his own brokerage company, Gilmer Properties. A continuing interest in athletics, especially track, has kept Tom engaged in the Bulldog Bench, and led him to serve as a Park Planning & Development Commissioner for the City of Orange, a position to which he was originally appointed in May 2000. In September 2003, he agreed to serve as chair of the $1.5 million campaign to construct an all-weather track at Runner Stadium. As the chair of that successful initiative, Tom was a member of the Centennial Campaign's National Campaign Committee. He was elected to the Board of Trustees in 2005. Richard “Dick” Fisher ‘65 received his bachelor’s degree in government from Redlands and went on to earn a master’s degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a juris doctor from University of California, Berkeley. He joined the prestigious L.A. law firm O'Melveny & Myers where he became a partner in 1977 (notable partners include former Secretary of State and Redlands alumnus Warren Christopher). His specialty had been labor relations and employment law, with emphasis on public education and the entertainment industry. He retired in 2005. In 1995, Dick received the Alumni Distinguished Service Award and, in 1999, he was inducted into the University's Intercollegiate Athletic Hall of Fame as a member of the University's 1964 West Coast Championship Basketball Team. He was also a recipient of the 2006 Centennial Award. During his leisure time, Dick has been active in coaching youth athletics and in historic preservation activities. Dick joined the Board of Trustees in 1987. Currently Chair Emeritus, he served as chairman from 2000 to 2013 and has served on most of the committees. Leland Launer, Jr. ‘77 graduated from the University of Redlands with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry. In 1979, he earned an MBA in accounting and finance from the University of Southern California. Lee’s father, Leland, Sr. ’40, was a longtime member of the Board of Trustees (1960-1962 and 1964-1979.) Lee served as chief executive officer of Fidelity & Guaranty Life Insurance Company from April 2011 to April 2015 and also served as its president until the fall of 2014. Previously, he enjoyed a distinguished 28-year career with MetLife, Inc., holding several leadership positions including president of the company's institutional business organization and the company’s chief investment officer, with total premiums, fees and other revenues of $11.5 billion. Lee currently serves as a private consultant to the insurance industry. Lee first joined the Board of Trustees in 2006 and has served as chair of the committee on trusteeship. The University of Redlands 36-member, 2015-16 Board of Trustees has a fiduciary responsibility to the University as a whole. The Trustees are responsible for electing the President and approving an annual plan of financial operation. Through the University bylaws, the day-to-day responsibility for administration of the University is delegated by the Trustees to the President.