George Nichols III was appointed by Gov. Matt Bevin to serve on WKU’s Board of Regents. 

Nichols is the executive vice president of governmental affairs for New York Life Insurance Company and a former Kentucky Commissioner of Insurance, according to a press release. He was Kentucky’s first African-American insurance commissioner. 

He was hired by the New York company in 2000. At the time of his hire, the company heralded him as “one of the country’s most highly regarded and influential regulators,” according to the New York Times. 

Per the Times report, his hire created concerns among some consumer advocates “who have long criticized what they call an overly close relationship between the insurance industry and the state officials who oversee it.” 

Nichols received his associate’s degree from Alice Lloyd College, where he currently serves on the Board of Trustees, received his bachelor’s from WKU and his master’s from the University of Louisville, according to a University of Kentucky database. 

Nichols will replace Cynthia Harris on the board, her term expired at the end of last month. His term will end in 2023.