Download a high resolution photo of Catherine Reynolds.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. ñ Catherine Brescia Reynolds, a prominent philanthropist and pioneer in the development of privately funded student loan programs, is the newest member of the Vanderbilt University Board of Trust.
Reynolds, who was elected to a five-year term at the fall meeting Nov. 18-19, is a Vanderbilt alumna and chairman and chief executive officer of the Catherine B. Reynolds Foundation. Its stated mission is "to help educate young people, to inspire them to believe in their power to make a difference as individuals and to motivate them to reach their greatest potential as citizens and productive members of society."
Reynolds, of McLean, Va., was recently featured in Business Week as one of the top 50 living philanthropists in America. The publication noted that she was the first self-made woman to make the list.
Since 1989 Reynolds has served as chairman and chief executive officer of EduCap Inc., which has provided more than $5 billion in education loans to hundreds of thousands of qualified students and families. She also was the founder and chairman of Servus Financial Corporation, which was acquired by Wells Fargo & Company in 2000. Reynolds helped revolutionize the student loan industry by creating the first asset-backed securitization structure for consumer education loans.
Reynolds has been active in many civic and charitable organizations, including the National Gallery of Art, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Ford’s Theatre, the Library of Congress, Morehouse College, the D.C. College Access Program, the Black Student Fund and the Washington Metropolitan Scholars.
Reynolds, a native of Jacksonville, Fla., majored in economics at Vanderbilt, earning her B.S. in 1979.
Media contact: Ann Marie Deer Owens, (615) 322-NEWS
Annmarie.owens@vanderbilt.edu