Sonic Corp. announced that Leonard Lieberman retired from the Board of Directors after 21 years of service, effective August 27. The company also announced that Jeffrey Schutz, managing director of Centennial Ventures, a leading venture capital firm, was named to the Board.

“We are very excited to welcome Jeffrey to the board and believe that his background in building and growing entrepreneurial businesses will be a valuable complement to the breadth of experience on our board,” says Cliff Hudson, chairman and CEO of Sonic Corp. “At the same time, Len has provided tremendous leadership, expertise, and knowledge to the board and management team, and Sonic has benefitted substantially from his insight and wisdom. We thank Len for his dedicated service and many contributions to our company.”

Schutz is a managing director of Centennial Ventures, a Denver-based venture capital firm with approximately $500 million of assets currently under management. Schutz has been a general partner in seven Centennial-sponsored partnerships and involved with the start up, growth, and development of approximately 50 companies over the past 23 years. Prior to joining Centennial Ventures in 1987, Schutz was vice president and director of PNC Venture Capital Group, an affiliate of PNC Financial. Schutz received a B.A. in economics from Middlebury College in Vermont, and an M.B.A. degree from the Darden School at the University of Virginia.

Lieberman is the former CEO of Supermarkets General Corporation and Outlet Communications. He joined the Board in December 1988; was a member of the Compensation Committee, of which he served as chair for a number of years; and was a member of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.