Board of Directors

Kevin Cohee is the owner, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of OneUnited Bank, the largest Black owned bank and the first Black owned internet bank in America. In the aftermath of the protest against police brutality in 2016, Mr. Cohee created and spearheaded the Bank Black movement resulting in Black people transferring tens of millions of dollars into Black owned banks as a form of social protest.

OneUnited Bank was established by unifying several community banks across the country: Founders National Bank and Family Savings Bank in Los Angeles, People National Bank in Miami and Boston Bank of Commerce. Respectively, these banks have tenaciously served many neglected urban communities in America. By unifying these banks, OneUnited Bank has built the foundation to solve the longstanding problem of access to capital in inner city communities.
Through Mr. Cohee’s visionary leadership, OneUnited Bank has exceeded industry averages year after year regarding asset growth and profitability. From 1996 to the present, OneUnited assets have grown from $56 million to over $650 million. The Bank has consistently been profitable and achieved a compound growth rate on its common equity of over 35%.

OneUnited Bank has been designated by the United States Department of Treasury as a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). The Bank has received the Bank Enterprise Award (BEA), the highest award offered by the United States government for community development for ten years.

A successful business executive and entrepreneur for almost 20 years, Mr. Cohee founded a consulting firm in 1979 specializing in acquisition of radio and television stations by minorities. After obtaining his JD/MBA in 1985, Mr. Cohee became an investment banker at Salomon Brothers, Inc.

By 1988, through a leveraged buyout, Mr. Cohee acquired Military Professional Services, Inc. (MPS), a 29-year old company that marketed Visa and MasterCard credit cards to military personnel. Mr. Cohee successfully turned MPS into a profitable company with a $40 million portfolio and 20,000 customers. By 1993, Mr. Cohee sold the assets of MPS achieving significant financial benefit from the transaction.

Mr. Cohee purchased a majority controlling interest in Boston Bank of Commerce in 1995 – when the Bank was experiencing financial difficulties. Mr. Cohee was elected Chairman and CEO in 1996 and has since spearheaded the Bank’s growth and profitability.

Mr. Cohee is a native of Kansas City, Missouri. He holds a Juris Doctor (JD) degree from Harvard Law School. He also holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin; where he was a 4-year letterman in football. He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity and has received numerous awards for his business and community achievements and contributions.

Download Kevin Cohee’s Bio [ PDF ]

Teri Williams is President and Chief Operating Officer of OneUnited Bank. She is responsible for implementation of the Bank’s strategic initiatives, as well as the day-to-day operations of the bank. These operational areas include all retail branches, marketing, compliance, lending, information technology, customer support, legal, and human resources.Under her leadership, OneUnited Bank has consolidated the local names and product offerings of four (4) banks to create a powerful national brand supported by innovative products and services. She believes the financial services industry has not connected with urban communities to fully support economic development and wealth building. OneUnited Bank can serve as a bridge by offering affordable financial services for all and financial workshops. She brings 30 years of financial services expertise from premier institutions such as Bank of America and American Express, where she was one of the youngest Vice Presidents. Ms. Williams holds an M.B.A. with honors from Harvard University and a B.A. with distinctions from Brown University.

She has served on numerous nonprofit boards. She currently serves as the Chairman of the Black Economic Council of Massachusetts (BECMA) and director of the 79th Street Corridor Initiative in Miami Florida. Ms. Williams also serves on the board of CCC Intelligent Solutions, a leading SaaS platform powering the multi-trillion-dollar P&C insurance economy. Ms. Williams is author of I Got Bank! What My Granddad Taught Me About Money (Beckham Publishing) a financial literacy book for urban youth. Ms. Williams has received numerous notations and awards for her contribution to urban communities including from the Urban League, NAACP and the National Black MBA Association.

John L. Sims, is Vice Chairman of OneUnited Bank. Mr. Sims is President of John L. Sims Consulting which is a successful and widely recognized leader with extensive worldwide experience in strategic planning and business operations.

With over 30 years of corporate management expertise, he has held senior executive positions at WFD, South Africa Free Elections Fund and Digital Equipment Corporation. Mr. Sims is Chair of the Board of Directors for the Freedom House in Boston, Chair of the Finance Committee of the National Urban league and Chair of Board of Trustees for Cambridge College.

He also serves on the Board of Directors of ABW Manufacturing Company, American Society for Training and Development, Roxbury Community College foundation and the Bay State Skills Corporation. He was named by Black Enterprise as one of the top 25 Black Executives. He is a recipient of a NAACP Image Award and the National Urban League Achievement Award. Mr. Sims earned a BS degree from Delaware State University.

Richard D. Carr, D.D.S., was a practicing pedodontist for over 30 years, having established one of most successful dental practices in Boston that continues to operate. Carr & Associates provides a wide range of dental services including pedodontics, endodontics, orthodontics, and general dentistry. In addition to practicing dentistry, Dr. Carr was a Clinical Professor of Pedodontics at Boston University School of Dental Medicine.

Prior to private practice, Dr. Carr practiced at Boston University and the Roxbury Medical and Dental Group. He was also the Coordinator of Pedodontic Services at Roxbury Comprehensive Community Health Center. He has served on the Board of Directors of the Urban League of Massachusetts and the Council of Dental Care of the Massachusetts Dental Society. Dr. Carr is a graduate of Lincoln University, University of Missouri, Meharry Medical College and Boston University School of Graduate Dentistry.

Deloris Pettis, MBA, CIA, CRMA, is C suite executive and board director with 30 years of experience in financial risk management, audit, governance, and controls across the public and private sectors.

Currently, as the Chief Audit Executive for Boston College, a $1 billion operation, Deloris serves as a change agent to influence behaviors and engage with divisions to evaluate and advise on operational, financial and information security risks while supporting the achievement of University strategic objectives. As CFO for Quality Interactions, a leading provider of health care cultural competency training for over one million health care professionals, Deloris was responsible for fiscal management, forecasting and partnering with the CEO in corporate planning and strategy development that led the company to be a trainer of choice. Deloris has held leadership positions at Northeastern University, Harvard University, Digital Equipment Corporation and Bank of Boston. Deloris began her career in public accounting at KPMG.

Deloris earned her MBA in accounting from Tulane University and has a BSc in Political Science from the State University of New York at Buffalo. She is a Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), a Certified Public Accountant (inactive) and has a Certification in Risk Management Assurance (CRMA). Deloris is a member of the Institute of Internal Auditors and Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics.

George A. Russell, Jr., with more than 35 years of experience in banking and finance, retired in December 2013. Mr. Russell was executive vice president and director of Corporate Citizenship for State Street Corporation, and Chairman and CEO of the State Street Foundation. He was responsible for State Street’s philanthropic and community support programs worldwide. Mr. Russell also served as Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer of the City of Boston and President and CEO of Freedom National Bank of New York.

Mr. Russell has received numerous awards and recognitions including an Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree from the University of Massachusetts and the Chancellors Award for Longstanding Community Commitment. He was inducted into “History Makers,” the largest African American video oral history collection housed at the Library of Congress. In addition, he received the “Living Legend” award from the Museum of African American History, and the “Corporate Leadership” award from the N.A.A.C.P. Boston Branch.

Mr. Russell currently serves on the Board of DRB Facility Services. He is past board Chairman of the Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts and board member of the Tufts Health Plan Foundation. Mr. Russell is a graduate of Clark University and received his MBA in finance from New York University’s Stern School of Business.

Leon Wilson is President and Chief Executive Officer at the Museum of African American History (MAAH) in Boston Massachusetts. With four decades in finance, and more than 20 years overseeing non-profit finance, Mr. Wilson brings a wealth of knowledge. He served as Executive Vice President and Managing Director of Bank of America’s Philanthropic Asset Management Group, Chief Executive Officer and General Partner of Capital City Ventures in Washington D.C., Executive Vice President of Nonprofit Finance Fund’s National businesses, and Corporate Senior Vice President and Managing Director at General Motors Acceptance Corporation Residential, where he headed Emerging Markets.

Mr. Wilson has served on numerous local and national non-profit boards in the areas of education, arts, and community impact. He is a former trustee for Boston Conservatory, Boston University Presidential Archives and Research Center, Dimock Community Health Center, and Cambridge College. He has also served on the advisory board for Bell Foundation, Boston University, and as a board member of the Boston University Alumni Association.

Mr. Wilson is the recipient of numerous national professional and community service recognitions, including Boston University Distinguished Alumni Award, Henry Buckner School Award for Outstanding Commitment to Education, and the City of Cambridge Mayor’s “Son of Cambridge” Achievement Award for Business Leadership.

He holds an undergraduate degree from Boston University and completed his graduate studies at Harvard Business School, and the Graduate School of Consumer Banking at the University of Virginia.