Taking a seat recently on the board of Otis College of Art and Design is allowing City National Corp.’s Thomas R. Miller to relive some of the best moments of his younger days.

“My dad was an artist, and when I was growing up, that was kind of where I began my interest in art,” said Miller, executive vice president of marketing at City National. “I took a lot of extracurricular course work in art while I was in high school, and at the time I went into college, I intended to be a graphic design professional.”

Miller began as an undergraduate art student at Michigan State University, but ended up earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees in advertising there.

He then worked on agency campaigns for clients such as Ford Motor Co., Mattel Inc. and Sunkist Growers Inc. during his 30-plus years in the advertising industry.

While managing a demanding workload, Miller has remained committed to the cultural community of Los Angeles in the 15 years since his move to the city. He was already active with several local organizations including the Los Angeles Conservancy, the Los Angeles Parks Foundation and the Los Angeles Library Foundation when he agreed to join the board at Westchester-based Otis College. He sees Otis as a valuable resource to the creative and cultural sides of Los Angeles, as well as to companies that rely on hiring employees with art and design backgrounds.

Miller said his community involvement helps him be a better business leader.

“Certainly, when you’re in a service business, whether it’s an advertising agency or whether it’s a bank, your knowledge of the fabric of the community is critical to your success,” Miller said. “And I think that’s the value one of the many values of getting involved in the community through non-profit volunteer work.”

Miller, 59, is married with two grown children, Andrew and Whitney. He lives in Palos Verdes with his wife, Noreen, and spends most of his free time doing volunteer work, but also likes to travel and ski.

Ilana Berger