Chicago Federal Reserve official to succeed former UD President Harker as Philadelphia Fed President

Paulson's selection from a panel with no direct ties to financial institutions came after a national search with internal and external candidates. 

Paulson will represent the Third Federal Reserve District on the Federal Open Market Committee, which governs monetary policy. (FOMC) and will  lead the Philadelphia-based organization in its research and outreach efforts.

Members of the FOMC set interest rates serve for one year on a rotating basis. They participate in all discussions relating to rate hikes or reductions.

President Donald Trump has pushed for interest rate reductions and harshly criticized  Fed Chairman Jerome Powell who has not stepped down from the post.

The Open Market Committee has reduced interest rates resulting from higher inflation, but has taken a wait-and-see stance over the impact of  tariff moves by the administration on inflation.

Federal Reserve Bank presidents also assess business conditions within their region, speak at various events and focus on key drivers of the economy. Harker focused on the impact of is known as "Eds and Meds"  (education and healthcare) in the region that includes southern New Jersey and much of Pennsylvania outside of the Pittsburgh area. 

Paulson will serve as the 12th president of the Philadelphia Fed.

Paulson, an economist,  is currently executive vice president and director of research at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.

Paulson has 20 years of experience as a leader in policy analysis and research related to financial stability and monetary policy. As executive vice president and director of research at the Chicago Fed, she advises the Bank’s president and CEO on monetary policy and attends FOMC meetings.

According to a Philly Fed release, she  is an expert on financial markets and institutions, with particular expertise in the insurance industry. Paulson established the Chicago Fed’s Insurance Initiative, which analyzes financial stability and regulatory issues in the insurance industry on behalf of the Federal Reserve System. During her time at the Chicago Fed, she also oversaw the Bank’s public affairs and community development divisions.

Paulson joined the Chicago Fed as an economist in 2001 after serving as an assistant professor of finance at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Paulson’s research has been published in leading scholarly journals. She is a past board member of the Western Economic Association International and the American Economic Association’s Committee on the Status of Women in the Economics Profession.

Paulson received a B.A. from Carleton College in Minnesota and a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Chicago.

“I am honored to serve as the next president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia,” Paulson said. “I look forward to meeting people throughout the Third District and leading the Philadelphia Fed team who are deeply committed to fostering the stability, integrity, and efficiency of the nation's monetary, financial, and payment systems. I am excited to become part of the community in the Third District.”

Paulson will participate in interest rate setting  meetings upon her start date and will become a voting member in 2026, following the established rotation of Reserve Banks.

Paulson has been viewed as a moderate on interest rates, a description that was also given to Harker, who was not an economist by trade.

Harker often mentioned  his background as an engineer in his speeches to business and other groups. Harker led the well-known Wharton School of business at the University of Pennsylvania before taking the top post at the University of Delaware. President Trump is a Wharton graduate.