Economist Susan M. Collins has become the first Black woman to lead one of the 12 regional Federal Reserve banks since the central bank system was created in 1914.
She was appointed the next president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston on Feb. 9 and will start in her new role in July. Collins has been provost and executive vice president for academic affairs at the University of Michigan since 2020.
A Harvard- and MIT-trained economist with extensive experience in government and academia, Collins, 63, is only the second woman to helm the Boston Fed. Cathy Minehan was president from 1994 through 2007.
Collins will also be on the central bank’s powerful Federal Open Market Committee, whose mandate is to promote full employment and stable consumer prices.
Collins, whose parents immigrated from Jamaica, became a U.S. citizen in 1997.
In a recent interview, Collins indicated she would focus on both traditional Fed concerns, such as the labor market, and the kind of community-oriented initiatives the central bank has focused on in recent years.
“I’ll note that a common theme throughout my career has been commitment to the mission of public service to improve lives — whether through education, research, or policy,” she said.
