Doane graduate Ken James was elected chair of the college's 36-member Board of Trustees during its May 8-9 meeting at the Crete campus. James joined the board in 1989 and has served as vice chair since 2000.
He is a former managing consultant with Hewitt Associates, a global, multi-service Human Resource consulting and outsourcing firm.
According to James, he steps into the leadership role at an important time for liberal arts education.
"In today's economy and global society, a liberal arts education is even more relevant than ever before. It is exciting to have the opportunity to play a key role on a team consisting of faculty, staff and board members whose goal is to provide the best possible liberal arts experience for our students."
James graduated from high school in Mullen, and earned his bachelor's degree from Doane in 1969, graduating magna cum laude. He completed a master's degree in actuarial science from the University of Iowa in 1971.
He went on to a long career in the actuarial and human resource consulting field, including 31 years as a managing consultant for Hewitt Associates, where he was a partner, member of the executive committee and a principal, before retiring in 2007.
He is a member of the American Academy of Actuaries and a Fellow in the Society of Actuaries. Other activities include his service as a board member of the Lake Forest Graduate School of Management and a board member of Career Resources Center, a nonprofit organization providing employment search support. He also is past deacon of the First Presbyterian Church of Lake Forest, Ill.
James resides in Lake Forest, Ill., with his wife, Alice (Ericksen) James. They have four grown children.