Pointing Us in the Proper Direction: Meet Some of Our Board of Trustees Members

With the 2019-2020 Academic Year well underway, Westminster College is shining the spotlight on the Executive Officers of the Board of Trustees. We also invite you to take moment to read about Young Trustee Olivia Wilson, ’19 KAΘ, who was elected to serve a two-year term on the Board, and Nick Diefenbach, ’07 ΒΘΠ, who as the new Alumni Council President will also serve on the Board of Trustees.

Donald P. Lofe Jr., ’79
Chairman of the Board
Elected to the Board: 2011
Don Lofe is a Partner and the Chief Risk Officer for Global Business Services – Mortgage and Lending Solutions for the IBM Corporation. Prior to joining IBM Corporation, he served in several senior executive roles for insurance, community lending and other financial and mortgage-related entities, including the EVP, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Administrative Officer for The PMI Group, Inc., a public (SEC) registrant and a domestic and international residential mortgage insurer. He was also Senior Vice President for the CNA Financial Corporation, a Partner with PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and the engagement partner for the Progressive Corporation. Mr. Lofe was named by Treasury and Risk (a leading corporate finance and treasury periodical) as one of the 100 Most Influential People in Finance in 2010. Additionally, he received the Westminster College Lifetime Alumni Achievement Award in 2011. He is a CPA, CGMA (Active Status) and is also COSO Certified by the AICPA. Mr. Lofe is additionally is a member of the Board of Directors of Seterus, Inc., and Kyanite Services, Inc.

Philip J. Boeckman, ’88 ΚΑ
Vice Chair of the Board
Elected to the Board: 2014
Philip Boeckman is the Managing Partner of the London office for Cravath, Swain & Moore LLP, a New York law firm. After graduating from Westminster in 1988, Mr. Boeckman attended the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1991 and served as Articles Editor on the Law Review. He joined Cravath in 1991, became a partner in 1999 and moved to London in 2000. Mr. Boeckman is a member of the Board of Directors of the International Churchill Society and the Senior Fellow of the National Churchill Museum, and he is active in several other volunteer organizations. He received Westminster’s Alumni Achievement Award in 2012.

William D. Felder, ’80 ΔΤΔ
Vice Chair of the Board
Elected to the Board: 2013
Bill Felder is the retired Chairman of the Board of Directors of Southwest Securities, Inc., aka Hilltop Securities Inc. Mr. Felder was an allied member of the New York Stock Exchange and a past Chairman of the National Association of Securities Dealers District 6 Committee and its Nominating Committee. He also is a past member of the Board of Governors of the Chicago Stock Exchange, a past member of the Securities Industry Association Clearing Firms Committee and served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Options Clearing Corporation from 2007 to 2012. Mr. Felder is a past Trustee of the Securities Industry Institute. After graduating from Westminster College in 1980 as member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity with a B.A. in Economics and Business Administration, Mr. Felder joined Southwest Securities and advanced to lead correspondent administration in 1988. Elected President of SWS Group, Inc. (Southwest’s Parent) in 2002, he served as the President and CEO of Southwest Securities, Inc. from 2004 until 2007, when he was appointed as Chairman until his retirement in 2012. Mr. Felder lives in Dallas, TX, with his wife, Katharine.

James C. Morton JR., ’67 ΔΤΔ
Vice Chair of the Board
Elected to the Board: 2011
Jim Morton has worked as a Tax Accountant at Arthur Andersen & Co., as a Tax Attorney at General Dynamics Corporation and as Vice President for Public Relations and Government Affairs, as well as General Counsel, for 24 years at Michelin North America, Inc. He then joined Nissan North America, Inc., as Senior V.P., Finance and Administration, and retired as Nissan’s Vice Chairman in 2007. Between 2002 and 2008, Mr. Morton served on the boards of the National Urban League and the Los Angeles Urban League. Since retiring, he has served two one-year terms as President of the Greenville Country Club, Chairman of the Greenville Technical College Foundation, Vice Chairman of the Hollings Cancer Center at the Medical University of South Carolina and as Chairman of the Greenville Health System. Mr. Morton is an Alumni Achievement Award recipient from Westminster College.

Olivia G. Wilson, ’19 ΚΑΘ
Young Trustee
Elected to the Board: 2019
A second-generation Westminster graduate, Olivia Wilson obtained her B.A. in Political Science and Comparative Government & Diplomacy from Westminster College in 2019. While attending Westminster, Ms. Wilson studied abroad in England, was an active member of Kappa Alpha Theta sorority, served as President of the Honors Commission and was selected as the student representative for the Missouri State Student Aid Policy Task Force. She graduated Summa Cum Laude and was nominated to serve on the Board of Trustees as Young Trustee. Upon graduation, Ms. Wilson was hired to work for Gamble & Schlemeier in Jefferson City, MO, full time as a registered Missouri lobbyist. She specializes in direct lobbying and public policy research. Ms. Wilson also assists clients with coalition building, association management and strategic campaign execution. She resides in Columbia, MO.

Nicholas “Nick” Diefenbach, ’07 ΒΘΠ
Alumni Council President
Elected to the Board: 2019
Nick Diefenbach is a member of the alumni and development team at Washington University. As a Senior Regional Director of Development, Mr. Diefenbach’s primary responsibilities are in the office of major gifts. He is part of the regional leadership team that travels to and manages the university’s development activities in New York City, a region that raised more than $200 million in their last campaign. Before moving back home to St. Louis five years ago, Mr. Diefenbach worked for the University of Missouri as a Development Officer in the College of Veterinary Medicine. After he graduated from Westminster College in 2007, he went to work in the Admission’s Office at the College. Mr. Diefenbach served as a chapter advisor for a number of years with the Beta Theta Pi Fraternity until turning his volunteer time to the Alumni Council. He is an active member of the St. Louis-based non-for-profit Pedal the Cause, an annual fundraiser that supports Barnes Jewish Cancer Centers in St. Louis. He lives in Webster Groves with his wife, Alumna Annie Hubbell Diefenbach ’09 ΚΚΓ.