Keynote Speakers | Washington Summit

2024 Speakers

Mary Kay Bates is President and Chief Executive Officer of Bank Midwest, a regional community bank and financial services company with $1.3 billion in assets based in Spirit Lake, Iowa. Bank Midwest provides banking, insurance, wealth management and trust services through an 11 branch network located throughout Northwest Iowa, Southwest Minnesota, and Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

David P. Barksdale joined Piedmont Federal Savings Bank as Chief Executive Officer in September 2019. Piedmont Federal is a $1.1 billion mutual savings bank founded in 1903 and serves the Triad, Northwest NC, and Lake Norman markets. Recent initiatives include a new business banking line of business, enhanced digital capabilities, and teammate engagement strategies.

Brent Beardall is President, Chief Executive Officer and Vice Chairman of WaFd Bank, a Washington state chartered commercial bank headquartered in Seattle, Washington (NASDAQ: WAFD). Mr. Beardall joined WaFd Bank in 2001 as Vice President and Controller. In 2003 he was promoted to Chief Financial Officer, a position he served in for eleven years. Prior to this he served as Chief Banking Officer where he was responsible for all client-facing activities of the bank.

Donna Brazile is a veteran political strategist, Senior Advisor at Purple Strategies, New York Times bestselling author, Chair of the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board, and sought-after Emmy and Peabody-award-winning media contributor to such outlets as ABC News, USA Today, The Hill and theGrio. She became the first African American woman to serve as the manager of a major party presidential campaign, running the campaign of former Vice President Al Gore.  

Michael R. Brickman is the Deputy Comptroller for Specialty Supervision at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). In this role, Mr. Brickman oversees Novel Bank Supervision, Technology Service Provider Supervision, Thrift Supervision, and Special Supervision. He reports to the Senior Deputy Comptroller for Midsize and Community Bank Supervision. Mr. Brickman began his career with the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) as an examiner in Kansas City, Mo., in 1998. 

In 2023, Senator Katie Boyd Britt was sworn in as Alabama’s first elected female Senator, the youngest Republican woman ever elected to the U.S. Senate, and the only current Republican mom of school-aged kids serving in the Senate. In the 118th Congress, Senator Britt serves on the Committee on Appropriations, where she is ranking member of the Homeland Security subcommittee; the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; and the Committee on Rules and Administration.  

J.R. Buckner is the president and CEO of First Federal Bank of Kansas City, the largest independent depositor-owned community bank headquartered in Missouri. He joined the bank in 2012 and the board in 2014 and leads an executive team focused on helping individuals realize the American dream of home ownership through market-leading financial product and services. J.R. has served on the ABA Mortgage Markets Committee, is a current member of the Government Relations Committee and Mutual Institutions Council.  

Lina Cagossi brings two decades of experience in journalism, broadcast media, and financial consulting to The Communication Center. Lina worked as a financial journalist, anchor, and reporter for Bloomberg Television and Sky Italia, first in London and then New York. Lina was a correspondent from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq, reporting also on the economy and politics, and anchored a daily show from Bloomberg NY studio on the stock market. 

Tyler Clinch serves as the Chief Executive Officer and President of First Community Bank of East Tennessee, as well as a Director and the Chairman of the Bank Board. She was appointed to this position in June of 2011, having previously served the bank as the Chief Financial Officer since 2005. Ms. Clinch also serves as a Director and President of the bank’s holding company, First Community Corporation.  

Ryan Coaxum an Austin native, is known for his striking energy and enthusiasm for life that drives him to give back to his community in various capacities. With over a decade of experience in the banking industry, he is half of the two-person team that brought Guaranty Bank & Trust (subsidiary of Guaranty Bancshares, Inc. NYSE: GNTY) to Central Texas. He is a proven brand-builder, with a track record of driving growth and expanding market presence.

Senator Dave Craven represents Randolph, Richmond, Montgomery, Anson, and a portion of Union counties in District 29. He was elected in 2020 and is the youngest serving Republican member of the North Carolina Senate. He currently serves as Chairman of Appropriations on Agriculture, Natural, and Economic Resources, and Commerce and Insurance. He serves as a member of Agriculture, Energy, and Environment, Education/Higher Education, Finance, and Transportation Committees.

Jennifer Docherty is the Co-Founder, Founding Director and Chief Executive Officer of Bank on Women. Prior to that, she was a managing director and associate general counsel in the financial services group at Piper Sandler & Co (previously Sandler O'Neill + Partners, L.P.). She has over 25 years of experience as a senior banking and legal advisor instrumental in developing a mature legal department and dominant capital markets franchise.

Jonathan Duffy is CEO of Duffy & Shanley, a marketing communications firm based in Providence, RI. As CEO of the agency, Jon is responsible for the culture, creative environment and partner relationships. In addition, he oversees consumer public relations, public affairs and social media marketing teams for clients AT&T, Dunkin’, Foster Grant, Hanes Brands, Orsted, College Ave. and BJ’s Wholesale Clubs. He is also chartered with leading the agency’s efforts in progressive marketing initiatives.

Congressman Tom Emmer was sworn in for his first term in the U.S. House of Representatives on January 6, 2015. He is currently serving his fifth term. After serving as the Chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee for the 116th Congress and again for the 117th Congress, Tom was elected by his fellow Republican colleagues to be the House Majority Whip. Currently, he sits on the House Financial Services Committee. Before coming to Congress, he served in the Minnesota House of Representatives from 2004-2008.

Gordon Fellows serves as President and CEO of the Mississippi Bankers Association (MBA), the state’s unified voice for the banking industry. He oversees all aspects of the association, including the MBA’s policy advocacy and Government Relations initiatives. In addition to leading the MBA’s lobbying efforts at the Mississippi State Capitol and working closely with the Mississippi Congressional Delegation and national banking trade groups to support industry federal lobbying efforts.

Dan Fichtler is a public policy professional focused on financial markets and the housing finance system. Fichtler joined FHFA as a Senior Advisor in the Office of the Director in October 2022. Prior to joining FHFA, he was Associate Vice President for Housing Finance Policy at the Mortgage Bankers Association. In that role, he managed a portfolio that included loan production issues and capital markets issues.

Josh Gottheimer represents New Jersey’s Fifth Congressional District in the northern part of the state, which includes parts of Bergen, Passaic, and Sussex counties. In Congress, Josh serves on two Committees, including the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and is a member of the National Intelligence Enterprise Subcommittee. Josh also serves on the House Financial Services Committee, where he is a member of the Subcommittee on National Security, Illicit Finance, and International Financial Institutions, the Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology and Inclusion, and the Subcommittee on Capital Markets.

Peter Gwaltney has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the North Carolina Bankers Association since January 2015. He is a former banker and previously served as CEO of the Louisiana Bankers Association. During his career, Peter has served on numerous committees with the American Bankers Association and currently serves on the ABA Board of Directors and is Chairman of the ABA Alliance of State Bankers Associations.

Noel Hansen has been a leader at Alpine Bank for more than 20 years, and her strategic initiatives have aided the organization in upholding its longstanding core values of Independence, Integrity, Community, Compassion and Loyalty. As a senior vice president at Alpine Bank, Noel leads a team of treasury management professionals and commercial sales specialists that help businesses streamline operations of collecting, distributing, and managing cash flow.  

Michelle Henery is an accomplished television and newspaper journalist with a wealth of on-screen broadcasting experience and a background in reporting, editing, and writing. Michelle has worked for leading news organizations across Europe, including as a writer for Reuters in Paris, a reporter and editor for The Times of London, an on-camera correspondent for Al Jazeera English, and most recently as a presenter and news anchor for Germany’s international broadcaster, Deutsche Welle.

Jennifer Huffman is a Virginia businesswoman and Vice President at Atlantic Union Bank, the largest regional bank in Virginia. Her role as Solutions Banking Relationship Manager encompasses leading the workplace banking program throughout Central and Western Virginia. In 2022, she was recognized as one of the "Top 20 under 40" by the Lynchburg Business Magazine. Additionally, she was nationally recognized and received the 2023 Emerging Leader Award by the American Bankers Association.

W. Brad Johnson, Ph.D. is a Professor of Psychology in the Department of Leadership, Ethics and Law at the United States Naval Academy, and a Faculty Associate in the Graduate School of Education at Johns Hopkins University. A clinical psychologist, Dr. Johnson is a mentoring expert specializing in developing gender-inclusive mentoring cultures for organizations around the globe.  

Brian Kelly is the Founder of The Points Guy (TPG), the trusted travel media platform that has revolutionized the travel and loyalty industries through expert insight, innovative technology, and acclaimed rankings. From his beginnings in finance, Brian has used his expertise and passion to transform TPG from a personal blog to an unrivaled media powerhouse with over 11 million monthly visitors, a full team of contributors, and the introduction of the TPG App.  

As the President and CEO of the Florida Bankers Association (FBA), the Honorable Kathleen L. Kraninger serves as the premier voice for the banking industry in the state of Florida and leads the organization. Kraninger, as Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau from December 2018 until January 2021, made her mark on all aspects of the agency’s mission and operations, particularly in facilitating innovation, promoting financial inclusion and leading through the economic uncertainty of the global pandemic.

Sarah Long joined the Delaware Bankers Association and the Delaware Financial Education Alliance in May 2015. Previously Sarah was a Senior Vice President with PNC Bank, most recently as the Director of Retail Strategy and Customer Advocacy. There she developed and implemented business strategies to drive end-to-end customer experience improvements, executed retail bank key strategic initiatives, and collaborated with government and regulatory affairs on legislative priorities and regulatory agendas.

Described as the “Warrior Storyteller,” retired Lieutenant Colonel Scott Mann is a former U.S. Army Green Beret who specialized in unconventional, high-impact special operations missions in do-or-die environments all over the globe. He grabbed global headlines when, alongside fellow Green Beret veterans and other volunteers, he led “Pineapple Express” — a grassroots leadership campaign using Rooftop Human Connection Skills to honor a promise and save more than 1,000 Afghans from a life-threatening situation amid the chaos of America’s withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Trey Maust is the Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of Lewis & Clark Bank; the Chairman of Lewis & Clark Bancorp; and the Co-Founder and CEO of Lewis & Clark Bancorp’s innovation subsidiary, BankEvo. He was also a founding board member and later the CEO of Sheltered Harbor, a sector-wide data protection and recovery initiative that now covers over 70% of the nation’s deposit accounts and retail brokerage client assets and 40% of the nation’s assets under management.

Meg McIsaac is the President and CEO of Bluestone Bank and Bluestone Financial MHC. She also serves as the President of the Bluestone Charitable Foundation. Meg began her career more than 30 years ago at Bank of Boston. Having worked at both large commercial banks and local community banks, she brings broad financial services experience and expertise that includes many years of commercial lending.

Jelena McWilliams is Managing Partner of the Washington, D.C. office and Head of the Financial Institutions Group (FIG) Practice. She is a former Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). While at the FDIC, McWilliams managed over 6,000 employees supervising approximately 5,000 banks, including through the COVID-19 pandemic. She participated in interagency negotiations, policy developments and joint agency rulemakings both as agency principal and as a voting member of the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC).

Mike Murphy is one of the Republican Party’s most successful political media consultants, having handled strategy and advertising for more than 26 successful gubernatorial and Senatorial campaigns, including 12 wins in “blue” states that have consistently voted Democratic in Presidential elections. He is also a widely quoted pundit; he is a longtime top analyst for NBC News and MSNBC and he co-hosts the popular podcast Hacks on Tap.  

Lisa J. Oliver has been a distinguished leader in the banking industry across New England and the Midwest for over three decades. In 2017, Lisa joined The Cooperative Bank of Cape Cod (The Coop), as President and CEO, becoming the first female CEO in its 103-year history. In 2020, she became the Bank’s first Chair of the Board of Directors.  

Randal Quarles is Chairman and co-founder of The Cynosure Group, an alternative asset and wealth advisory firm. From October 2017 through October 2021, Mr. Quarles was Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve System, serving as the system’s first Vice Chairman for Supervision, charged with ensuring stability of the financial sector. From December 2018 until December 2021, he also served as the Chairman of the Financial Stability Board.  

Michael Ravid is an assistant vice president for Regional & Community Bank Supervision in the Supervision, Regulation & Credit (SRC) department at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. He oversees a portfolio of community banks in the first district that includes mutual banks as well as regional banks and service providers. Mike coordinates local and Federal Reserve System work on various risk related to community banks such as market, liquidity, and credit risk.  

Thomas K. Rudzewick is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Maspeth Federal Savings and Loan Association, a $2 billion, mutual-savings association based in Maspeth, NY. He joined Maspeth Federal Savings as Vice President and Chief Lending Officer in 2000 and became the President and CEO in 2016. Tom serves on the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s Mutual Savings Association Advisory Council. He is a Board Member of COCC. He is the past chair of the ABA’s Membership Council and Professional Development Group.  

Richard Schaberg head of the U.S. Financial Institutions and co-head of the FinTech groups, is a recognized "go to" trusted advisor to financial institutions and service providers, for all facets of corporate, securities, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), capital offerings, and complex bank regulatory and compliance matters. For more than 30 years, Rich has played a lead role for clients in connection with debt and equity offerings, M&A, corporate governance matters, proxy contests, securities law compliance, and exchange listing standards.  

Kristina Schaefer serves as General Counsel, Chief Risk Officer and Chief Administrative Officer for First Bank & Trust. In her role, Kristina serves as the primary legal resource for the organization and oversees the risk management and human resources functions. Prior to joining First Bank & Trust, Kristina practiced law, where she was a member of the financial institutions practice group.

As a member of the bank’s Executive Leadership Team, Stephanie Schwartzberg identifies and manages enterprise risk and compliance, and drives the overall legal strategy for the bank including governance, corporate law, banking and trust matters, commercial transactions, litigation, insurance, and a wide range of contract negotiations across all business functions. She serves as a member of the Pennsylvania Bankers Association Legal Affairs Advisory Committee and a Member of the ABA Mutual Institutions Council Administrative Committee

Ralph Simone has spent over a quarter of a century helping individuals and organizations transform themselves, raise their consciousness, and perform at their fullest potential. As a Black Belt in karate and an avid reader, Ralph understands the benefits of consistent practice and continuous learning as integral parts of leadership development. An accomplished writer, Ralph is currently writing a book entitled Slow Down to Go Faster. He also published Making It Stick and The Daily Re-Tweet.

David Smith, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor at the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School. A former Navy pilot, Dr. Smith led diverse organizations of women and men culminating in command of a squadron in combat and flew more than 3,000 hours over 30 years including combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.  

Joshua Stallings, Deputy Director Division of Bank Regulation (DBR), joined FHFA in 2011 and most recently served as Examiner-in-Charge of the Office of Fannie Mae Examinations within the Division of Enterprise Regulation (DER). Previously, he served as the Examiner-in-Charge of the Office of Freddie Mac Examinations and the Boston and Cincinnati FHLBanks.  

U.S. Senator Jon Tester is a third-generation Montana farmer, a proud grandfather, and a former school teacher. He is the Chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee and Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense. He also serves on the Senate Banking Committee, the Senate Commerce Committee, and the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. Jon and his wife Sharla still farm the same land near the town of Big Sandy, Montana that was homesteaded by Jon’s grandparents in 1912

Gregg R. Tewksbury is the President and Chief Executive Officer of New Hampshire Mutual Bancorp (NHMB), a $3.7 billion mutual bank holding company based in Concord, New Hampshire. NHMB is the parent company for three community banks throughout NH as well as a state-chartered trust company with over $1.3 billion of assets under management. Prior to joining NHMB in 2018, he was the President and CEO of Savings Bank of Walpole (SBW), based in southwestern NH.

Ted Wartell is the Associate Director, Office of Housing and Community Investment at the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). His expertise includes affordable housing, federal housing programs, financial regulation, and mortgage finance. Prior to FHFA, Wartell served as the Director of Regulatory Affairs at the Office of Comptroller of the Currency. He also served as chief of staff for Community Lending at Fannie Mae.  

Kip Weissman is a partner in the Washington, D.C. law firm of Luse Gorman, PC. He focuses his practice on regulatory, securities and benefits matters for mutual and other financial institutions. Mr. Weissman devotes a significant portion of his practice to counseling mutual institutions and their boards of directors on strategic and regulatory matters. In this capacity, he has acted as counsel on virtually every type of corporate transaction that could be engaged in by a mutual institution or mutual holding company.

Dr. Sahar Yousef and Lucas Miller are both cognitive neuroscientists and MBA faculty at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. At Berkeley, Sahar and Lucas run the Becoming Superhuman Lab and teach one of the most popular MBA classes, called "Becoming Superhuman: The Science of Productivity and Performance," which teaches busy professionals how to get their most important work done, in less time, with less stress.