Janet Yellen, a 1967 Brown graduate, won Senate approval Monday, Jan. 6, 2014, to become the new head of the Federal Reserve — the first woman to lead the national bank. She begins her new position on February 1. “As a member of the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors, as head of the Council of Economic Advisers in the Clinton Administration, and as a senior administrator at the Federal Reserve, Janet Yellen has served the nation skillfully, effectively, and admirably through uncertain economic times,” said Brown President Christina Paxson. “On behalf of Brown University and her fellow alumni, I thank her for exemplary public service and congratulate her on her appointment as chair of the Federal Reserve.”