Board of Trustees

Richard Sidwell, Chair

Birthright member of Middleton Ohio Friends Meeting (Ohio Yearly Meeting of Friends, Conservative).  Head of School, Olney Friends School (2003-2011); Business Manager, Olney Friends School (1999-2003); Self-employed co-owner of Sidwell Division, Raven Rocks Concrete, Beallsville OH (1975-1999). Co-Founder and Treasurer of Raven Rocks, Inc. a 1250 acre wilderness preserve and alternative energy demonstration center near Beallsville, OH (1970-Present).  Founding and current President of the Barnesville Area Rails to Trails Committee; Past President and member of the Barnesville Rotary Club. Other board service: Ohio Association of Independent Schools; Friends Council on Education; Barnesville Blue Ribbon Economic Development Committee; and current Executive Director of Captina Conservancy Land Trust. 1968 B.A. (History and Secondary Education) graduate of Wilmington College; While at Wilmington was a Work-Study participant (Randall Auto parts), Soccer player, residence Hall counselor, and scholarship recipient.

Timothy A. Buren, Treasurer

Tim Buren began his professional career in 1983 after graduating from Wilmington College of Ohio with a BA in Business Administration. Joining his Father and one staff person in what was known then as Barnard Insurance from West Salem, Ohio. Tim began to understand firsthand the life as an independent agent. His entrepreneurial spirit fueled their agency to grow, and their vision centered on nurturing and developing the key relationships with customers, staff and carriers. Over time, he summoned his brother Jeff from the banking industry to partner in managing agency operations and changed the name to honor their Father, Don, to The Buren Insurance Group Inc. Due to continued growth, they now employ 32 Associates over 4 locations. Tim’s largest focus now is working with agencies all over Ohio and the surrounding states to help them grow their revenue, build their agency and perpetuate their life’s work. Tim has also earned a Certified Insurance Counselor designation as well as a certificate from the College of Financial Planning. He currently serves as a Trustee at Wilmington College and has served on numerous insurance company advisory boards. Tim resides in Galena, Ohio, with his wife Sharon and they have 2 daughters, Brooklyn and Olivia.

Taylor Stuckert, Assistant Secretary

Taylor Stuckert, AICP, serves as the Executive Director of the Clinton County Regional Planning Commission and leads planning and development efforts across Clinton County, Ohio. Taylor is also the Co-Founder of Energize Clinton County (ECC), a non-profit organization whose work, in collaboration with the CCRPC, was awarded the 2013 National Planning Achievement Award for Innovation in Economic Planning and Development by the American Planning Association. Taylor has been featured in a range of publications and as a speaker at state, national, and international venues.Taylor is a board member of the County Planning Directors of Ohio, the Ohio State University Swank Program in Rural-Urban Policy and serves on several local boards including: the Clinton County Trails Coalition, History Center, Business Advisory Council, and Joint Recreation District.Taylor holds a Master of Community Planning, with a specialization in Economic Development, from the University of Cincinnati-College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP) and a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from Butler University. Taylor is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer (RPCV) having served in Bolivia. Taylor is an 8th generation Clinton Countian, a descendant of a Quaker lineage dating back more than three centuries, and is an active member of Campus Friends Monthly Meeting (Ohio Valley and Wilmington Yearly Meeting).

Christopher Che

Christopher Che is President and CEO of the Che International Group, LLC (CIG), which he founded in 2005. CIG is a multi-national holding company that identifies, acquires, supports, and grows scalable subsidiary companies in diverse industries through startups, strategic acquisitions, joint ventures, and alliances, to help customers maximize supply chain diversity while promoting supply chain excellence. Christopher is an accountant by profession and a veteran Senior Financial Executive with over 35 years of vast and dynamic business management experience.

CIG’s subsidiary acquisition experience includes Hooven-Dayton Corporation (HDC), high-quality prime product labels, flexible packaging, promotional coupons, and specialty printing solutions (2007); Digital Color International, LLC (DCI), point of purchase/entry display, specialty folding cartons, and commercial offset print and bindery (2011); a controlling interest in Cog, LLC, customized graphics production solutions (2012), and chairman of TrueChoicePack Corporation (TCP), manufacturer and distributor of traditional and green private label and customized packaging and disposable products (2014). After successful exponential growth—HDC grew over 300% in 10 years, DCI tripled growth in five years, and Cog and TCP each grew over 3000%—CIG divested all of its Packaging Holdings to focus on Global Supply Chain Excellence for customers across multiple industries including Healthcare, Logistics, Technology, and Telecom.

Consistent with his vision to influence global supply chain excellence, Christopher founded Transworld Supply Network (TSN) in 2018 and Transworld Delivery Corporation (TDC) in 2020. Originating primarily as a medical supplies, products, and equipment company, TSN has evolved into an innovative central marketplace, a multiproduct, multi-division, multi-industry business-to-business, and global supply sourcing enterprise. Powered by transparent Alliance Partnerships with First-class Industry Leaders, TSN is now the Source for Medical Supplies, Products, & Equipment (accounts for 10% of PPE supplies in the U.S.); Industrial & Safety Supplies & Equipment; Building Maintenance & Janitorial Supplies; Construction Supplies; Marketing & Communications Products & Services, Warehousing, Fulfillment & Logistics Services, Sustainable and Biodegradable Food Packaging, and Retail Packaging. TDC is an Amazon-branded Delivery Service Provider (DSP), a last-mile delivery company that quickly grew to over 25 delivery vehicles with 50 employees by the end of 2020. TDC is forecasted to exceed 50 vehicles and 100 employees by the end of 2021 and will continue to expand in the Logistics space through acquisitions.

As President and CEO of CIG, Christopher’s responsibilities include setting strategy and vision, building cohesive executive teams that will lead the company to the next level, creating a positive culture of sustainable growth, and properly allocating capital resources. CIG’s rapid expansion has resulted in its being recognized by Black Enterprise Magazine as a 2012 BE 100s company, one of the nation’s largest black-owned enterprises, and by Inc. Magazine as a 2012 Inc. 500|5000 company, one of the fastest-growing companies in the U.S.

Christopher’s community involvement includes serving as a member of President (Obama)’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness from 2011 to 2012, board member of the Ohio Minority Supplier Development Council, the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber of Commerce, the African American CEO Roundtable of Cincinnati, the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, the Dayton Area Business Advisory Council, and chairing the Ohio Minority Business Input Committee for all Ohio Minority Companies. Professional, business and civic awards and honors include the President’s Award from the Ohio Minority Supplier Development Council in 2013, the “Outstanding American by Choice” Award in 2012 from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) at the recommendation of the White House (this is the highest award presented to immigrants by the Department of Homeland Security), induction into the Association of Ohio Commodores in 2011 by Ohio Governor Kasich; the Cameroon Professional Society (CPS) 2011 Distinguished Leadership Award; the Dayton Business Journal 2010 “Executive of the Year” Award; and the Dayton Business Journal’s 2010 Top 10 Most Influential People in the Greater Dayton Region.

Christopher earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting with a minor in Computers from Wilmington College.

College-Ohio in 1985 and a Master’s of Accountancy degree from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio in 1986.  He resides in Cincinnati, Ohio, with his wife Rose and is the proud father of two sons and one daughter.

Christen Clougherty

Founder and Executive Director of the Nobis Project, a non-profit educational support organization that focuses on developing educators’ capacity to foster reciprocal and meaningful community partnerships, build culturally responsive classrooms, and promote a social justice approach to global service-learning. Christen attributes her commitment to using service-learning and civic engagement to promote global citizenship to her experiences as a student at the Carolina Friends School. Christen received her Ph.D. in Quaker Studies from the University of Birmingham, UK’s collaborative program with Woodbrooke Quaker Study Center. Christen has over twenty years of experience as an educator and administrator in community organizations, K-12 public, charter and independent schools, and colleges/universities. Based in Savannah, GA, Christen attends the Savannah Friends Meeting and is a founding board member of two charter schools, Tybee Island Maritime Academy and Susie King Taylor Community School.

Elizabeth J. Garvey

Birthright Quaker; resident of southeast Michigan; WC graduate (‘65): English, psychology, religion, secondary education; 2 masters’ degrees, Michigan State University: 2015 recipient, WC’s John Frazier Award for Distinguished Volunteer Services; PAC; active in multiple community organizations: Salvation Army, Love INC (Love In the Name of Christ), P.E.O. and my church; had weekly radio program 15.5 years; private tutor, 27 years; presenter of legacy-building sessions for women; financial supporter of scholarship programs locally, nationally and especially at WC; teaching career: secondary & college levels, as well as in a high-security juvenile prison; world traveler for missions and adventure travel; passion for volunteer service locally & worldwide; Girl Scout leader & trainer; motivational speaker; prison ministry of restoration and reconciliation for incarcerated parents and their children; 2 adult children who are married with families.

Elizabeth Newby

Elizabeth completed her under graduate education in Communications,  Public Relations and Counseling Psychology at Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana, and did her graduate work at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana.  She has worked in the areas of mental health, education, social work and counseling, in clinics, hospitals, public schools, and in the Department of Social Services (DHS) as a child abuse investigator dealing with trauma and sexual abuse cases of children and the elderly.

When her husband accepted a call to serve the Plymouth Congregational Church in Des Moines, Iowa, Elizabeth was appointed Executive Director for Latino Affairs for the State of Iowa by then Governor Vilsack. When she and her husband moved to the Twin Cities of Minnesota, she worked in the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration, doing case management and counseling with immigrants, guiding them through the immigration court process and coordinating needed services.

Elizabeth came to Cincinnati in the spring of 2016 when her husband became the Minister at Cincinnati Friends Meeting (Indian Hill), Ohio.  Currently Elizabeth is a Parent Educator and Counselor primarily for Hispanic families.  In brief, she says, “My life goal is to live a meaningful and purposeful life serving those who are living on the fringes of society…the persons that our society has labeled as “expendable” or “untouchable.”

Elizabeth is the author of one book, A Migrant With Hope, (Broadman Press) and the editor of two other books, A Philosopher’s Way(Broadman Press) and Between Peril and Promise(Thomas Nelson Publishers)  She is featured in two book anthologies, Immigrant Women, American Culture: An Anthology of Civilization Texts, and A Certain Kind of Perfection: An Anthology of Quaker Writers.  In 2002 she was awarded the Passport to Prosperity Award from the Iowa Council for International Understanding.

Elizabeth and Jim have one daughter, Alicia Marie Clark who lives near Indianapolis, Indiana with her husband, David.  For relaxation she likes to play golf and spend time at her home, Newbeginnings, on the coast of North Carolina.

Ruth Olmsted

Professionally, I spent my entire career in academe, from part-time/adjunct teaching in 1974 while working toward my PhD in Comparative Literature, through full-time teaching at two colleges and a prep school, and finally 26 years at Excelsior College. Excelsior is an external degree program for adult learners who complete their studies through coursework and assessment of prior learning. These adult learners include three unique populations: nursing students; active duty and veteran military students; and Orthodox Jewish students. For the first 21 years, I served in the assessment group, developing college-level proficiency exams and portfolio assessment systems and advising on the applicability of other exams to degree programs. My last 5 years I was a Program Director (department chair) in the School of Liberal Arts, responsible for the general (non-major) liberal arts programs. One of my programs offered degree completion options to soldiers at the Sergeants Major Academy (Ft. Bliss, Texas). Working with the military mindset was an eye-opening experience for a Quaker and provoked some interesting discussions with colleagues! The other key program, one that I began developing while I was in the assessment group, allowed Orthodox Jewish students to pursue an Excelsior degree without compromising their religious principles. We also offered an Israel Study Abroad program for which we evaluated the curricula of more than 30 post-secondary institutions for college credit. Since my retirement in April 2019, I have continued service to the Orthodox population as a consultant in test development and portfolio assessment for Excelsior and for Elyon College and Genesis University, which serve this population exclusively.

Other experience highlights, possibly relevant to the Wilmington College Board of Trustees:

Accreditation and evaluation reviews: I was in a leadership position during two cycles of self-review for Excelsior’s Middle States accreditation. All of our exams were evaluated multiple times by the American Council on Education. I also helped the School of Nursing and the School of Business & Technology with their specialized accreditation reviews.

Program and course development: I love curriculum and course design and have indulged that love at all my institutions. At Excelsior, the Judaic Studies program and the competency-based general liberal arts capstone course were my signature projects. I developed new courses wherever I was teaching through my whole career.

Degree completion insights: Since my earliest encounters with returning adult students, I have been dedicated to enabling efficient and mindful degree completion. I think Wilmington would benefit from looking at additional options here.

Professional/technical editing: I have years of experience polishing and tightening other people’s writing, re-casting written and oral presentations for different audiences, and providing expert guidance on language and style.

Friends ties: I am co-clerk of my Monthly Meeting. I have taught at William Penn College and Wilmington and belong to the Friends Association for Higher Education. I have been involved with FCNL since around 1979, most of that time as a General Committee member and including service on the Policy, Field, Futures, Annual Meeting Planning, Personnel, and Nominating committees. With Sterling Olmsted and Mike Heller, I edited the second volume of the Nonviolence and Social Change series, Mohandas K. Gandhi: The Last Eighteen Years.

Lawrence W. Sidwell

Retired Senior Vice President, Global Credit & Risk, John Deere Financial, a position he began in 2014. He was responsible for all John Deere Financial global credit and risk activities, including risk management, credit policy, credit administration, credit audit, and credit training. In addition, Sidwell was responsible for ensuring compliance with financial services regulators globally and manages relationships with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Federal Reserve. Sidwell joined John Deere in October 1999 as Process Owner, Market Development for John Deere Financial. He became Senior Vice President of e-commerce in 2000 and Senior Vice President of iVesta, the Company’s dot com joint venture with CoBank in 2001. In 2003, he was named Senior Vice President, Ag Financial Services. In 2012, Sidwell was appointed

Senior Vice President, Credit and Operations, Region 4 and led the wholesale, retail, and credit operations groups supporting customer service and credit management activities for all financial services operations in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Before joining John Deere, Sidwell worked for Farm Credit Services in Perry, Iowa, holding the positions of Vice President and Credit Supervisor, from 1976 to 1985. He was Vice President for Rabobank Nederland in New York, New York in 1985, and went on to be Vice President at the company’s Chicago location in 1993. In 1996, he became Chief Executive Officer for Agricredit Acceptance Company in Des Moines, Iowa. A native of Galion, Ohio, Sidwell earned a Bachelor of Science degree in agricultural economics from Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. He is a member of the Board of Directors for Junior Achievement USA, a former member of the Board of Trustees for Wilmington College and former Chairman of Capital Campaign for Olney Friends School.

Lucy Y. Steinitz

Lucy describes herself as a New Yorker by birth and personality who gained a foundational education, deep sense of self, and profound appreciation for Quaker values while attending Wilmington College (graduating in 1972). She went on to get a PhD in social work from the University of Chicago and spent the next 20 years in domestic social policy and non-profit management, most of the time as Executive Director of Jewish Family Services of Central Maryland. This job offered some opportunities for international learning and consultation (Israel, China, Poland, Zimbabwe and the Ukraine), until finally the travel bug got the better of her and she moved with her whole family to the newly-independent country of Namibia (Southern Africa) for one year – except that the one year became fourteen.  In Namibia, Lucy co-founded Catholic Aids Action with a local nun and also the Church Alliance for Orphans.  Following Namibia, Lucy and her husband spent three years working under USAID in Ethiopia until they finally returned to the USA in 2014.  Lucy now works for Catholic Relief Services on issues of justice and peace-building. She has authored, co-authored or edited over fifty publications including two books and multiple training manuals for children and adults affected by conflict, illness and loss. In her spare time she volunteers for various Washington, DC- area organizations and the international  Alternatives to Violence Program, and she enjoys “lazy-river kayaking” and  long walks in nature.