OKLAHOMA CITY – Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President and Chief Executive Officer Jeff Schmid announced the appointment of Cortney Cowley as assistant vice president and Branch Executive of the Kansas City Fed’s Oklahoma City Branch office, effective January 1, 2025.

In this role, Cowley will serve as the Bank’s lead officer and economist in the state of Oklahoma. She will work closely with the Branch’s board of directors and be responsible for briefing President Schmid on economic trends in the state. She will oversee the regional economic team in Oklahoma City and engage with business, civic and community groups across the state.

“Cortney’s background as an economist and her connections across Oklahoma and the Tenth District are valuable assets for the Kansas City Fed as we pursue our mission,” Schmid said. “The insights Cortney will provide from Oklahoma City will ensure that the state is well represented in the monetary policy deliberations I participate in at the Federal Open Market Committee.”

Cowley is a senior economist in the Regional Affairs Department in the Oklahoma City branch office, where she has supported economic initiatives in the Tenth District, including surveys and policy briefings on regional and agricultural economic trends. She also served as a special advisor on the agricultural economy to Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman. Her current research focuses on agricultural finance, commodity markets, farm management, and natural resource economics and policy.

Cowley joined the Bank in 2015 as an economist after completing her Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics at Oklahoma State University. She was promoted to senior economist in 2021. She holds a B.S. degree in Biosystems Engineering from Oklahoma State and a M.S. degree in Civil Engineering from Colorado State University. She is a member of the Economic Club of Oklahoma City, Downtown Club of Oklahoma City, the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association and serves as an economic advisor on the campaign cabinet of the United Way of Central Oklahoma.

Cowley succeeds Chad Wilkerson, who has served as the first Oklahoma City Branch Executive since 2006 and plans to retire in January 2025.

Wilkerson joined the Bank in 1998 as a research associate in the Economic Research Department and has held several positions over his 26-year tenure at the Kansas City Fed. He concludes his Bank career as the Bank’s lead officer in Oklahoma, with responsibility for Oklahoma City Regional Affairs, Community Development, and supervision of several business surveys, including the Bank’s manufacturing, services and energy survey products.

“Personally, I am grateful to Chad for his leadership and service to the Bank and the Federal Reserve, as well as the support he has provided me in economic briefings and relationship building in Oklahoma,” said Schmid. “We will greatly miss his leadership and outstanding work ethic, as well as his humor, down-to-earth style, and camaraderie.”

As the regional headquarters of the nation’s central bank, the Kansas City Fed and its branch offices in Denver, Oklahoma City and Omaha serve the seven states of the Tenth District: Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Wyoming, northern New Mexico and western Missouri.

Media Contacts

Sarah Dickson: Sarah.Dickson@kc.frb.org

Victoria Rosengarten: Victoria.Rosengarten@kc.frb.org