CNA Selects Rozanne L. Ridgway New Board Chair

Alexandria, Va. — On December 16, 2008, the Board of Trustees of CNA elected Ambassador Rozanne L. Ridgway as its new Board chair, effective March 19, 2009. She will replace the Honorable William K. Brehm, who has served as chair since March, 13, 2003 and as a trustee since 1994. Brehm will continue to serve as trustee.

"We are pleased that Ambassador Ridgway will assume the position of Board chair," said Brehm. "Her energy, leadership, and special expertise in international and defense matters all will be of great benefit to the company."

"I look forward to Bill’s counsel as we make this transition in 2009," said Ridgway. "We thank him for his vision and passion in working with management and the Board to move CNA to new levels of diversification in our business and to modernize Board organization and process."

Brehm is chairman emeritus of SRA International, a firm founded in 1978 as a private venture and now a public company. He served as Assistant Secretary of the Army and Assistant Secretary of Defense in the Johnson, Nixon, and Ford administrations. Brehm is now spearheading an initiative with the University of Michigan and seven other major universities involving an unprecedented collaborative research effort to accelerate the search for a cure for Type 1 diabetes.

Ridgway, a member of the CNA Board for 16 years, is the non-executive Chairman of the Baltic-American Enterprise Fund. During a 32-year career as an American Foreign Service Officer, Ambassador Ridgway served, among other positions, as Assistant Secretary of State for European and Canadian Affairs, Ambassador to the German Democratic Republic, Counselor of the Department, Ambassador to Finland, and Ambassador for Oceans and Fisheries Affairs. She serves at present as the Director of the Sara Lee Corporation and the Emerson Electric Company and, among others, is a trustee of the National Geographic Society.