Retired financial executive Joseph D. Gutman has been appointed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker to the University of Illinois Board of Trustees.

Gutman has extensive experience both in finance and as a member of advisory and oversight boards, including an appointment by President Barack Obama to the Council of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. He is also an alumnus of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC).

Gutman will fill the seat being vacated by Ricardo Estrada and, pending confirmation by the Illinois Senate, serve a term that runs through 2025.

“Joe Gutman will bring extensive professional expertise to the Board of Trustees, a breadth of experience that will serve the board and the U of I System well. I am pleased to welcome him,” board Chairman Don Edwards said. “I thank Gov. Pritzker for his thoughtful evaluation in making this appointment, which aligns well with the interests and goals of the system. A University of Illinois education has long been a pathway to opportunity, and I look forward to working with Joe to maintain and enhance that rich tradition.”

University of Illinois System President Tim Killeen said he is eager to work with Gutman.

“Joe Gutman’s career has been defined by a commitment to the kind of achievement and excellence that a U of I education makes possible, and I look forward to working with him as we seek to open our doors wider to deserving Illinoisans, maintaining our commitment to providing a world-class educational experience that is both accessible and affordable,” Killeen said. “I want to thank him for his willingness to serve as a trustee, and Gov. Pritzker for his appointment.”

Gutman, a Democrat, is a resident of Highland Park. He earned a bachelor of science in accountancy from UIUC and a master of business administration from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

He was a partner at BDT & Company from 2017 until retiring in 2020 and remains a consultant with the firm. He previously was a managing director and head of the Business Development team at GCM Grosvenor from 2004 to 2016. He began his career at Goldman Sachs, where he worked for 22 years and was a partner and co-head of the Chicago office and Midwest business from 1996 to 2002.

Gutman serves on the board of Make a Better Place Foundation and the Dean's Business Council of the Gies College of Business at UIUC. He served on the Council of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum from 2011 to 2016, and currently sits on the museum's Strategic Advancement Committee. Gutman previously was a member of the board and executive board member of the Birthright Israel Foundation and the board of the Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago.

The board oversees the University of Illinois System and has 13 members, 11 of whom vote. Nine trustees are appointed by the governor and no more than five may belong to a single political party. One seat is currently open following the departure late last year of Trustee Kareem Dale.

The U of I System is a world leader in research and discovery, and the largest educational institution in the state with more than 94,000 students, 26,000 full-time equivalent faculty and staff, nearly 800,000 alumni and pumps $19 billion into the Illinois economy annually. The three system universities award more than 24,000 degrees a year.