Our executive leadership

Interested Trustees

Michael W. Kremenak has served as a Trustee on the Board of the Thrivent Funds since 2021. He is currently the President of the Thrivent Funds and previously served as Senior Vice President from 2020 to 2023 and as Secretary and Chief Legal Officer from 2015 to 2020. He has served as a Trustee and Senior Vice President of Thrivent Church Loan and Income Fund since 2020. Mr. Kremenak joined Thrivent in 2013 and is currently Head of Thrivent Mutual Funds. Before joining Thrivent, Mr. Kremenak worked in the legal department of a large asset management firm. Mr. Kremenak serves on the investment committee of a non-profit organization, and he has experience serving as a member of the board of directors of a non-profit organization from 2014 to 2020, including on its investment committee.

David S. Royal has served as a Trustee on the Board of the Thrivent Funds since 2015. He is currently the Chief Investment Officer of the Thrivent Funds, and he previously served as President from 2015 to 2023 and as Secretary and Chief Legal Officer until 2015. He has served as Chief Financial Officer of Thrivent since 2022 and as Executive Vice President, Chief Investment Officer of Thrivent since 2017. Prior to his current position at Thrivent, Mr. Royal was Deputy General Counsel. He has served as Trustee and President of Thrivent Church Loan and Income Fund since 2018. Before joining Thrivent, Mr. Royal was a partner at an international law firm based in Chicago. Mr. Royal also has experience serving on the boards of directors of non-profit organizations.

Independent Trustees

Janice B. Case has served as a Trustee on the Board of the Thrivent Funds since 2011 and as Chair of the Governance and Nominating Committee since 2012. She has over 40 years of experience in the electric utilities industry, including ten years as an executive officer of a Florida-based electric utility and holding company. Since leaving full-time corporate employment, Ms. Case gained mutual fund industry experience as a former director on the board of another fund complex. Ms. Case has also served as a director on several public corporate and non-profit boards.

Robert J. Chersi has served as a Trustee on the Board of the Thrivent Funds and as Chair of the Audit Committee since 2017. He also has been determined by the Board to be an Audit Committee financial expert. Mr. Chersi has over 30 years of experience in the financial services industry and is the founder of Chersi Services LLC, a financial consulting firm. He is currently the Lead Independent Director and Audit Committee Chair at BrightSphere Investment Group plc. Mr. Chersi is also the Executive Director of the Center for Global Governance, Reporting and Regulation of the Lubin School of Business at Pace University and the Helpful Executive in Reach in the Department of Accounting and Information Systems at Rutgers University. He served as a Director of E*TRADE Bank and E*TRADE Financial Corporation from 2019 to 2020.

Arleas Upton Kea has served as a Trustee on the Board of the Thrivent Funds since 2022. She retired after more than 35 years of government experience at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) where she served in various roles, including as the Deputy to the Chairman for External Affairs; Chief Operating Officer and Deputy to the Chairman; Director, Administration; Ombudsman; and in the Legal Division, including as Acting Deputy General Counsel. As a member of FDIC’s leadership team, she served on the operating committee and the compensation committee and led initiatives in strategic planning, risk management, crisis management, business continuity planning, public policy, external affairs, human resources, and diversity, equity and inclusion. She has gained experience as a director on the board of several non-profit organizations.

Paul R. Laubscher has served as a Trustee on the Board of the Thrivent Funds since 2009 and as Chair of the Board since 2019. He also previously served as Chair of the Investment Committee from 2010 through 2018 and during a period in 2022. He is a holder of the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and has over 25 years of experience as a portfolio manager. Mr. Laubscher was formerly a senior investment manager of the retirement fund of a large public technology company.

Robert J. Manilla has served as a Trustee on the Board of the Thrivent Funds since 2022 and as Chair of the Investment Committee since 2023. He has over 30 years of experience in the financial services industry, including fifteen years as Vice President and Chief Investment Officer of the Kresge Foundation, a private, national foundation that works to expand opportunities in America's cities through grantmaking and social investing in arts and culture, education, environment, health, human services and community development in Detroit. Mr. Manilla spent 20 years in the auto industry where he held management roles in product development, sales and marketing, manufacturing, international operations, capital markets and asset management. He has experience as a member on the board of several private, public, and non-profit organizations.

James A. Nussle has served as a Trustee on the Board of the Thrivent Funds since 2011 and as Chair of the Ethics and Compliance Committee since 2022. He has more than 20 years of public service experience, including serving as a Representative from Iowa in the House of Representatives from 1991 through 2007 and as Director of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. Mr. Nussle is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Credit Union National Association, a national trade association for America’s credit unions. Mr. Nussle has gained experience as a director on the advisory board of a private equity firm and on the board of several non-profit organizations.

James W. Runcie has served as a Trustee on the Board of the Thrivent Funds since 2022. He is the Chief Executive Officer of the Partnership of Education Advancement, a not-for-profit organization that provides institutional capacity building support to mission-focused colleges and universities. Mr. Runcie previously served at the US Department of Education as Chief Operating Officer of Federal Student Aid. Prior to his government service, Mr. Runcie was an investment banking executive at several firms including UBS Investment Bank, Bank of America, and Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette. Mr. Runcie currently serves on several for-profit and not-for-profit organizations.

Constance L. Souders has served as a Trustee on the Board of the Thrivent Funds since 2007 and as Chair of the Contracts Committee since 2010. She also served as the Audit Committee financial expert from 2010 through 2016. Ms. Souders has over 20 years of experience in the mutual fund industry, including eight years as the former Treasurer of a mutual fund complex and registered investment adviser and the Financial and Operations General Securities Principal of a mutual fund broker-dealer.

Contact our Board of Trustees

To contact the Thrivent Mutual Funds' Board of Trustees, send a letter addressed to:

Thrivent Mutual Funds
Board of Trustees (or name a specific trustee)
Secretary of Thrivent Mutual Funds
901 Marquette Avenue, Suite 2500
Minneapolis, MN 55402

The secretary will collect the letters and, if appropriate, will forward them to the chair of the board or to a specific director if named. Communications may also be referred to other departments within Thrivent or its affiliates if applicable. The secretary generally will not forward to the Board any communication that is primarily commercial in nature, that relates to an improper or irrelevant topic, or that requests general information about the Thrivent Mutual Funds or Thrivent.