The University of Chicago Board of Trustees elected three new members at its meeting on June 6. They are Rachel D. Kohler, Group President for Interiors Group, Kohler Co.; Nassef O. Sawiris, CEO of OCI N.V.; and Donald R. Wilson Jr., founder and CEO of the DRW Trading Group.
“Our three new Trustees have remarkable records of accomplishment as leaders, in business and as highly distinguished alumni of the University of Chicago,” said Board Chairman Andrew M. Alper, AB’80, MBA’81. “My fellow Trustees and I look forward to working with Rachel Kohler, Nassef Sawiris and Donald Wilson as the board continues to provide strong leadership and support for President Zimmer and the University.”
More on the Board of Trustees' new members:
Rachel D. Kohler, MBA’89
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Rachel D. Kohler is President of the Interiors Group for Kohler Co., responsible for the company’s luxury home furnishing businesses worldwide, a position she has held since 2000. She joined Kohler Co. in 1992, and since then has held a number of key positions with the company. After graduating with her MBA from UChicago, Kohler began her career at First Boston Corporation and later worked at Booz Allen Hamilton. Kohler is a member of the Council on Chicago Booth and a Board Member of the MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics, and has been a member of the Kohler Co. Board of Directors since 1999.
Nassef O. Sawiris, AB’82
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Nassef O. Sawiris has been chief executive officer for OCI N.V. and its predecessor, Orascom Construction Industries, since 1998. Besides serving as CEO and major shareholder for OCI N.V., Sawiris is also Director of the BESIX Group, a Belgian construction firm, and a board member and shareholder for Lafarge S.A., a France-based construction materials company. Besides his leadership in construction, Sawiris is committed to social development. He is Co-Founder of the OCI Foundation, which provides support for educational and health-care initiatives, Founder and Trustee of the Sawiris Foundation for Social Development in Egypt, and a member of the International Leadership Board of the Cleveland Clinic.
Donald R. Wilson Jr., AB’88
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Donald R. Wilson, Jr., is founder and chief executive officer of DRW Trading Group. Established in 1992, the company has grown from a one-man sole proprietorship to a global firm with over 500 employees and offices in Chicago, New York, and London. A member of the Futures Industry Association (FIA) board and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) Global Markets Advisory Committee, Wilson is a frequent speaker on industry issues. He was named to Crain’s Chicago Business “Forty under Forty” List in 2007 and serves as a board member of the Children’s Memorial Hospital Foundation and the Becker Friedman Institute for Research in Economics.
—Prof. Kunle Odunsi
