(WNY News Now) – Leadership Transition Marks New Chapter for Historic Institution.
CHAUTAUQUA, N.Y. — The Chautauqua Institution Board of Trustees announced that Laurie A. Branch, who currently serves as chair of the board’s budget and finance committee, has been elected to succeed Candace L. Maxwell as board chair. This appointment is effective October 1, 2025, when Maxwell will have completed three consecutive two-year terms as chair, which is the maximum allowed under the board’s bylaws.
Branch is a fourth-generation Chautauquan and a lifelong summer resident of the Institution grounds. A resident of Longboat Key, Florida, and originally from Olean, New York, Branch is CEO and President of Ironpeak, Inc., one of the oldest and largest networks of independent property and casualty agencies in the country. Holding three master’s degrees and a Ph.D., she also teaches at the undergraduate and graduate levels at St. Bonaventure University. She has served as a member of the Chautauqua board since October of 2022.
In addition to her volunteer service to Chautauqua, Branch has served on the boards of St. Bonaventure University and The Western New York Nature Conservancy. She also served for 15 years on the Board of Education for the Olean City School District.
“Laurie has provided valuable insights and expertise since joining the board, and we look forward to her continued leadership following my retirement as chair,” said Maxwell. “Laurie’s enormously successful career as a business leader, history of nonprofit volunteer leadership and philanthropy, and lifelong association with Chautauqua will inform her tenure as board chair. On behalf of the board, I offer her our heartfelt gratitude for taking on this role.”
As previously announced, Chautauqua Institution President Michael E. Hill, Ed.D. plans to depart Chautauqua at the end of May for a new role as president of Randolph-Macon College. Preliminary planning for the Board’s search for Hill’s successor is underway, and the appointment of interim leadership will be announced soon.
ABOUT CHAUTAUQUA INSTITUTION
Chautauqua Institution is a not-for-profit, 750-acre community on Chautauqua Lake in southwestern New York State, where approximately 7,500 persons are in residence on any day during a nine-week season, and a total of more than 100,000 attend scheduled public events. Chautauqua is dedicated to the exploration of the best in human values and the enrichment of life through a program that explores the important religious, social and political issues of our times; stimulates provocative, thoughtful involvement of individuals and families in creative response to such issues; and promotes excellence and creativity in the appreciation, performance and teaching of the arts. The Institution celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2024.
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