Veteran financial advisor Kamila Elliott, president and partner of Grid 202, a registered investment advisor in Washington, D.C., has become the first Black woman to chair the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Board of Directors.
“Kamila is a champion for a more diverse and sustainable financial planning profession,” CFP Board CEO Kevin R. Keller said in a news release. “Her continued leadership and counsel will provide great value to CFP Board as we work toward a day when every American has access to financial planning.”
With her appointment, Elliot becomes the first African American to assume the reins of leadership over the professional body that certifies more than 92,000 financial planning professionals across the United States.
She is also the eighth woman to chair the organization's board of directors.
Attorney and financial advisor Donna G. Barwick was the first woman to chair the CFP Board, from 1996-1997, according to CFP spokesman John Pappas.
Elliott served as chair-elect in 2021 and took on her role as CFP Board chair on Jan. 1.
“I am excited for existing and aspiring CFP professionals to see how a woman and a person of color can achieve success in the profession,” Elliott said in an email.
Elliot holds a bachelor's degree in communications from Pennsylvania State University and an M.B.A. degree in finance. She joined Vanguard as a relationship manager in 2008, working with high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients. After earning her CFP certification in 2013, Elliott went to work as a financial advisor for Dimensional Fund Advisors, then joined Rutledge Financial Partners as a wealth manager.
In 2020, she opened her own advisory firm, Grid 202.
“I wanted to be a financial advisor to serve underrepresented communities,” she said in the email. “Many communities of color do not have access to holistic financial planning to reach their goals.”