Jeff Schmid Becomes 6th President and CEO in Foundation’s History
Dallas, TX (SMU) Sept. 1, 2021 — Jeff Schmid joins the SW Graduate School of Banking (SWGSB) Foundation, headquartered at SMU’s Cox School of Business, as president and CEO effective Sept. 1. Schmid’s move comes as current President and CEO S. Scott MacDonald, Ph.D., retires from the position after 24 years of service.“In that time, Scott has helped strengthen ties between SWGSB and SMU Cox,” said Vic Pierson, chairman, president & CEO of Moody National Bank in Galveston and chairman of the SWGSB Board of Trustees. “He has contributed greatly to SWGSB’s role as a trusted educational source for banking education, bank leadership development and bank director training programs. We are grateful to Scott for his leadership even as we look ahead to Jeff taking the helm.”
With nearly 40 years of banking and regulatory experience, Schmid began his career at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) in 1981 and remained until 1989. He graduated from the SWGSB summer residence program at SMU Cox in 1990.
“My 35-year association with the Foundation’s schools changed the trajectory of my career,” says Schmid. “I look forward to offering that kind of career-changing experience to future SWGSB students. The Foundation’s director programs also afford the opportunity to positively influence bank boards and their governance.”
After completing the SWGSB program, Schmid became president and CEO of two closely held banks in the Midwest. In 2007, he led the establishment of Mutual of Omaha Bank, a wholly owned investment of Mutual of Omaha, where he served as chairman and chief executive officer. He built the organization into a national franchise with assets of nearly $10 billion.
Schmid is a longtime member of the Cox School of Business Executive Board. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Nebraska. His involvement with the SWGSB Foundation is long established, including service as past chairman of the SWGSB Foundation Board of Trustees. He received the SWGSB Alumni Association’s Distinguished Service Award in 2006. Only seven other graduates in the SWGSB’s 64-year-old history have received this prestigious honor. He has also been a SWGSB faculty member and was Dean for Bankers at SWGSB. He presently sits on the boards of Operation HOPE in Atlanta, Georgia, and Avenue Scholars in Omaha, Nebraska.
About the SW Graduate School of Banking Foundation
Established in 1957 at Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas, the SW Graduate School of Banking (www.swgsb.org) has become one of the top banking educational institutions. It is a professional school for bank officers, regulators and others holding management positions in the financial services industry. Emphasis is placed on financial management, leadership development, and strategic planning. The SWGSB Foundation conducts the prestigious Assemblies for Bank Directors, a series of annual seminars and workshops held throughout the United States, Canada and off shore for bank board members and senior officers. SWGSB and SWGSB Foundation are headquartered at SMU’s top-ranked Cox School of Business. For more information about the SWGSB (www.swgsb.org) or SWGSB Foundation programs, contact (214) 768-2991 or info@swgsb.org.
About SMU Cox
In 2020, the Cox School of Business celebrated 100 years of business education at SMU. The Cox School is committed to influencing the way the world conducts business via prolific research that provokes innovation, change and global thought leadership. SMU Cox offers a full-range of business education programs including BBA, Full-Time MBA, Professional MBA (part-time), Executive MBA, Online MBA, Direct MBA and Master of Science degree programs, as well as Executive Education. Consistently ranked among the world’s leading business schools, SMU Cox maintains an active alumni network in more than 40 countries. SMU Cox is accredited by the AACSB.
