For Immediate Release: Oct. 11, 2002
Paula Lovell, president of Lovell Communications Inc., has been appointed chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s board of directors. David M. Ratcliffe, president and chief executive officer of Georgia Power Co. and executive vice president of Southern Co., has been appointed deputy chairman. Their terms as chairman and deputy chairman begin Jan. 1, 2003, and run through Dec. 31, 2003.
Lovell founded Lovell Communications Inc. of Nashville, Tenn., in 1988 after working in the communications field as a publicist, a feature writer for the Nashville Banner, and a television producer and writer. Lovell was named to the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta in 1998. She was named deputy chairman for 1999 prior to being reappointed for 2000, 2001 and 2002. Previously, Lovell served as a member of the board of directors of the Atlanta Fed’s Nashville Branch.
Lovell has served on many community and civic boards, including several committees of the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce, the board of the Nashville Ballet and the Boy Scouts of America Executive Board. She is a member of the International Women’s Forum, the Nashville Rotary Club and many professional organizations.
Ratcliffe is president and chief executive officer of Georgia Power Co. and executive vice president of Southern Co. He joined Southern Co. in 1971 as a biologist. He was named vice president of fuel services of Southern Company Services in Birmingham in 1986. During his career he has served as executive vice president of Southern Company Services, president and chief executive officer of Mississippi Power Co., senior vice president of external affairs for Southern Co., and executive vice president, treasurer and chief financial officer for Georgia Power Co. Ratcliffe is active in the community, serving on the board of directors of Mississippi Chemical Corp., the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and the Georgia Chamber of Commerce. He is also chairman of the board for the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education and an inactive member of the Georgia Bar Association.
Each of the nation’s 12 Federal Reserve Banks has a nine-member board of directors. Three Class A directors represent national and state-chartered banks that are members of the Federal Reserve System. Three Class B directors are elected by these banks but represent commerce, industry, agriculture, labor and consumers. Three Class C directors represent the same broad array of public interests but are appointed by the Board of Governors in Washington, D.C.
The board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta oversees the management of the bank’s operations and recommends changes in the discount rate. Board members also contribute to the formulation of U.S. monetary policy through the economic information they provide the bank’s president.
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