Marilyn Mohrman-Gillis Named First Executive Director of the CFP Board Center for Financial Planning

Charles Chaffin Appointed to Newly Formed Center Position of Director of Academic Home

Washington, D.C., January 13, 2016 – Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. (CFP Board) today announced Marilyn Mohrman-Gillis as the first Executive Director of the recently formed CFP Board Center for Financial Planning, where she will lead a profession-wide effort to build a more diverse and sustainable financial planner workforce.

“Marilyn is a highly regarded leader within the financial planning community. With her experience at CFP Board and extensive background in the non-profit sector, she brings a wealth of knowledge and proven skills to this critical position,” said Kevin R. Keller, CFP Board’s Chief Executive Officer. “She has a strong track record of success and I am confident that the Center will thrive under her leadership.”

As Executive Director, Mohrman-Gillis will have responsibility for the overall strategic direction of the Center and will report to the CEO. She will work closely with the Center’s Advisory Council on development and implementation of research and programmatic initiatives to advance the Center’s goal of building a 21^st century financial planner workforce. Mohrman-Gillis will continue her current responsibilities as CFP Board’s Managing Director for Public Policy and Communications, which she has held since July 2008, until a successor for her current position is named.

While at CFP Board, Mohrman-Gillis led efforts to increase the visibility and credibility of the CFP® certification with regulators, policymakers and the public. Under her tenure, CFP Board became a nationally recognized leader in areas related to investor protection and advancing standards to promote the delivery of competent and ethical financial planning services to the public. A leader in developing strategic partnerships to advance common goals, Mohrman-Gillis helped create the Financial Planning Coalition, which – along with members CFP Board, the Financial Planning Association and the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors – helped influence policy outcomes to benefit the public, including the promotion of fiduciary level financial advice. Prior to joining CFP Board, Mohrman-Gillis established an impressive track record of successful advocacy on behalf of the American public during a 30-year career in Washington. She began her career as a litigator in the Washington, DC, office of the law firm Steptoe & Johnson. She has a BA in Psychology from St. Mary’s College, Notre Dame, a MSW from Catholic University and a JD from the Columbus School of Law, Catholic University.

“The CFP Board Center for Financial Planning will leverage collective resources to positively impact the financial planning profession for generations to come,” said Mohrman-Gillis. “I am deeply honored and humbled to have been named to this new position. I’m looking forward to leading this collaborative effort to build capacity for the financial planning profession by creating a sustainable supply of new and more diverse advisors to serve the public and to more firmly establish financial planning as a recognized profession by students, faculty, advisors and the public we serve.”

In addition to naming a new Executive Director, CFP Board has also named Charles Chaffin, Ed.D as the Center’s Director of Academic Home, a newly created position. In this role, Chaffin – who has been with CFP Board since April 2010 – will be responsible for leading the Center’s Academic Home initiatives, which will include creating an academic journal for financial planning, conducting an academic colloquium, and building the body of knowledge for the financial planning profession. He will also continue to recruit and support the development of new degree-level programs, but oversight and support responsibilities for the 370+ CFP Board Registered Programs will be transitioned to a new Director of Academic Programs.

At CFP Board, Chaffin has collaborated with a variety of colleges and universities in developing and revising curricula to enhance student achievement in both degree and non-degree programs of study. He is a published researcher with his work focusing on the cognitive workload of learners in different task settings, reflective practice, best practices in higher education curriculum and instruction, and most recently papers focused upon financial planner preparation programs. He is also the editor of both versions of the Financial Planning Competency Handbook from CFP Board, with the second edition published in 2015 by John Wiley & Sons. In addition to his research background, Chaffin has taught at all levels of education, from primary grades in the public schools to baccalaureate and doctoral studies at several colleges and universities. He holds a Doctor of Education degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with an additional graduate degree from the University of Michigan.

National recruitment searches will be conducted for both the Managing Director of Public Policy and Communications and the Director of Academic Programs positions.