Joyce Aboussie
CEO
Aboussie & Associates

Aboussie & Associates is a strategic consulting firm serving Fortune 500 CEO’s, and public and private corporations nationwide. Aboussie is also CEO of TCI, one of Missouri’s largest qualitative and quantitative public opinion research and voter contact firms.

Aboussie currently serves on The Obama Campaign’s National Finance Board. Aboussie served as Congressman Dick Gephardt’s National Political Director for 30 years, and elected democrats at every level, from Governors to Senators to Presidents. Aboussie is also a prolific Democratic fund raiser, raising millions of dollars each election cycle.

Aboussie’s personal priority is St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, where she has served on the National Board of Directors since 1983, being the youngest person ever elected to that position. In 2006-2008, she served as Chairperson of the ALSAC/St. Jude Board of Directors and was the first woman to be elected to that national position.

Barbara C. Archer
President and founder
Archer Wealth Management, LLC

Archer Wealth Management, LLC has guided high net worth families and business owners in all areas of financial management including investment, estate and gift planning strategies since 1983.

Archer has been listed as a “Top 250 Advisor” in Worth, as one of the “Leading Wealth Managers of the Central United States” in Forbes, recognized by Medical Economics in “Best Financial Advisers for Doctors” and is a “Five-Star Wealth Manager” as published in St. Louis magazine.

Barbara’s current community service includes St. Louis Zoo Association Executive Committee chairing the Zoo’s Planned Giving Advisory Committee, the Executive Leadership Team of the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women and as a past President of COCA, will Co-Chair 2012 COCAcabana. Additionally, she serves on the board of the Estate Planning Council and is a member of the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, Financial Planning Association, St. Louis Forum, and is a Life Member of the Million Dollar Round Table.

Barbara is an honors graduate with a B.S. and MBA from the University of Dayton. She is a Registered Principal with NFP, Securities, Inc. and she holds the CFP, CLU, and AEP designations. A frequent speaker, Barbara has presented on succession planning, charitable giving and retirement income strategies and lectured on practice management to the financial planning industry.

Erin Budde
Senior Vice President
Wells Fargo Advisors

Erin plans and executes the firm’s nation-wide strategy for charitable giving, volunteerism and community involvement.  She serves on the company’s Senior Leadership Board, Management Committee and Diversity & Inclusion Advisory Council.  Prior to her current position, Erin was president of Gateway Center for Giving and worked with St. Louis’ grantmaking community to make the most of their philanthropic investments.  Her community development experience includes roles as a university researcher, nonprofit executive director, urban planner and fundraising consultant.  Erin serves on the boards of the Missouri History Museum and stl250.  She has been named on the St. Louis Business Journal’s list of Most Influential St. Louisans and is a graduate of the Leadership St. Louis Class of 2010.  

Maxine Clark
Founder, Chief Executive Bear
and Chairman
Build-A-Bear Workshop®

Maxine Clark is one of the true innovators in the retail industry. During her 35+ year career, her ability to spot emerging trends and her insight into the desires of the American consumer have generated growth in department stores, discount and specialty stores. In 1997, she founded Build-A-Bear Workshop, a teddy-bear themed retail-entertainment experience. Today there are more than 400 Build-A-Bear Workshop stores worldwide, including company-owned stores in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Canada, The United Kingdom and Ireland; and franchise stores in Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, Mexico, Brazil and the Middle East. In 2011 Build-A-Bear Workshop was named to the FORTUNE 100 Best Companies to Work For® list for the third year in a row. Maxine’s extra curricular passion is public education and she serves on many boards that are dedicated to improving the education of children. She is a graduate of the University of Georgia and holds an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from St. Louis University. Maxine’s first book “The Bear Necessities of Business: Building a Company with Heart” was published in 2006.

Myrtle E. B. Dorsey, Ph.D.
Chancellor
St. Louis Community College

Myrtle serves as the chief executive officer of a multi-campus college system serving nearly 90,000 students annually with an operating budget of $166.3 million.

Prior to joining STLCC in June 2011, Dorsey served as chancellor of Baton Rouge Community College for nearly nine years. Under her leadership, Baton Rouge Community College obtained accreditation and reaffirmation of accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

Dorsey currently serves as chair of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) Board of Directors. Dorsey represented the organization at the first White House Summit on Community Colleges in October 2010.

Dorsey serves on additional boards including Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, Missouri Botanical Garden, Mayor’s Commission on Children, Youth & Families and United Way of Greater St. Louis.

Dorsey has received the Baton Rouge Brotherhood Sisterhood Award, the NAACP Freedom Fund Community Service Award and the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development's Master Teacher Award.

Laurna Godwin
Partner, Vector Communications
Board Chair, Greater Saint Louis Community Foundation

For more than 30 years, Laurna Godwin has been using her communications skills to inform and educate people about issues affecting how they live, work and play. She is a three-time Emmy award winning broadcast journalist who today is a partner and co-founder of Vector Communications Corporation, a public engagement and communications consulting firm. Besides public engagement, Vector’s other core competencies are: strategic planning; communications planning; event planning; media relations; and video production. Laurna is currently Board Chair of the Greater St. Louis Community Foundation, which helps St. Louisans put their charitable dollars to work to improve people’s lives. The foundation annually makes over $17 million in grants, making it one of the region’s largest grantmakers. Laurna and her husband have a charitable fund with the foundation.

The Honorable Darlene Green
Comptroller
City of St. Louis, Missouri

Darlene Green serves as the City’s Chief Fiscal Officer. She directs all the fiscal affairs of the City for a combined annual budget of more than $950 million. As Chief Fiscal Officer, she is a member of the Executive Branch of City government, the Board of Estimate and Apportionment.  
 
Comptroller Green is the first woman ever elected to the position and makes use of her talent, skills and experience to oversee the financing of some of the largest capital improvement projects in the region.  During her tenure in City government, first as Budget Director and now as Comptroller, St. Louis recorded nine consecutive years of multi-million dollar budget surpluses and seven credit rating upgrades.  In May 2008, the City was upgraded to an A+ credit rating for the first time in 35 years.  The City’s A rating have been reaffirmed under Green’s leadership by reporting agencies Standard & Poors, Moody’s and Fitch for 2011.
 
Darlene Green is a native St. Louisan.  She graduated from Vashon High School and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Washington University.  She has over 30 years of professional experience in both the public and private finance sectors.  Ms. Green actively works in her community with both charitable and professional organizations.

Rhonda Hamm-Niebruegge
Director
Lambert-St. Louis International Airport

Rhonda has been the Director of Lambert-St. Louis International Airport since January 2010.

Lambert is the primary air carrier facility for the St. Louis region handling more than 12 million passengers annually. Rhonda manages 500 employees with revenues averaging 165 million dollars annually. She is also Chairwoman of the 17-member St. Louis Airport Commission.

Prior to Lambert, Rhonda logged 25 years in aviation management positions with American Airlines, Trans World Airlines (TWA) and Ozark Air Lines; a majority of her career has been based in St. Louis, Missouri.

Rhonda is engaged in numerous St. Louis business and civic organizations including Chairman of the Advisory Board of John Cook School of Business at Saint Louis University, board member for the Regional Commerce and Growth Association (RCGA) and the past President (and current member) of the Executive Board for Habitat for Humanity St. Louis. She has been honored multiple times by the St. Louis Business Journal as one of St. Louis’ “100 Most Influential Leaders.” In the fall of 2011, Rhonda was honored with a Women of Distinction award by the Missouri Athletic Club.

Catherine Hanaway
Partner
Ashcroft Hanaway, LLC

Catherine aggressively and successfully litigates complex civil and white collar criminal cases, provides seasoned and reliable legislative strategic advice, represents clients with thorny regulatory challenges and crafts messages for customers and the public when a client is facing a difficult public opinion dilemma.
 
In private practice, she has represented clients with energy, regulatory, banking and securities law issues. Catherine worked to recover millions during the last major financial crisis to rock the nation.
 
As U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri, Catherine successfully tried cases to jury verdicts, supervised more than 4,000 cases and a staff of over 100. During her tenure, the office set records for the most cases tried and money forfeited.
 
As the first and only woman to serve as Speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives, Catherine held the line against tax increases proposed by the Governor, balanced the budget in an economic downturn, reformed the state’s corporate laws and passed innovative economic development tools. Catherine has also served on the staff of U.S. Senator Kit Bond.

Ellen Harshman, Ph.D., J.D.
Dean
John Cook School of Business
Saint Louis University

Dr. Harshman, a 39-year Saint Louis University veteran and member of the management faculty, has previously served as senior vice provost, interim CIO, assistant and associate dean in the Cook School of Business and has held several leadership positions in student development. An Ohio native, Dr. Harshman earned her undergraduate degree at Miami University, her master’s degree at Wright State University, and her doctorate and law degrees at Saint Louis University. She has taught legal environment of business, business law, employment law, and business ethics. Among the areas in which she has written and presented papers are leadership development, legal and ethical issues in business, employment, and higher education. The recipient of several teaching awards, Dr. Harshman was recognized by the St. Louis Business Journal in Aug. 2004 as one of the area’s “Most Influential Business Women”. She was also selected by the St. Louis Business Journal in five out of the last six years as one of St. Louis’ “Most Influential Leaders”. Among her current community and professional activities, Dr. Harshman is currently a member of the SSM St. Mary’s Hospital Community Advisory Board, a trustee of Beta Gamma Sigma, the international honor society for business students, a member of the Advisory Board of Sogang University, Seoul Korea, and co-chair of the Accreditation Quality Committee and member of the Blue Ribbon Committee on Accreditation of the Association to Advance Schools of Business International (AACSB).

Tracy Hart
President
Tarlton Corp.

Tracy is the first woman president of a major general contracting company in St. Louis, and one of a few nationally. Strongly committed to economic development and community service, Hart serves on the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors for the St. Louis Regional Chamber & Growth Association, chairing the Energy & Environment Committee. She is a trustee of the Saint Louis Science Center and a member of the Science Center’s Board of Commissioners, the Muny’s Board of Directors and the St. Louis Children’s Hospital Board of Trustees. In 2008, Hart was elected the first woman chairman of the Associated General Contractors of St. Louis. She is Life Director for the Associated General Contractors of America.

Wendy Henry
Managing Partner, St. Louis and Decatur)
BKD

Wendy oversees the administration, planning and operations for approximately 125 personnel serving more than 4,500 business and individual clients.
 
Wendy has more than 25 years of experience providing audit and consulting services to associations and membership organizations, foundations, religious organizations, colleges and universities, health care providers and other not-for-profit and charitable organizations.
 
She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and Missouri Society of Certified Public Accountants.
 
Boards Wendy serves on include the United Way of Greater St. Louis, St. Louis Zoo Association and St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association.  She is a member of the Regional Business Council and serves on the higher education and K-12 education committees.  Wendy also is an executive leadership team member for the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women and chair of the 2012 Go Red Luncheon.  Wendy was recently honored as one of the 2011 YWCA Corporate Leaders of Distinction.
 
She is a 1983 magna cum laude graduate of Illinois College, Jacksonville, with a B.S. degree in business administration with an emphasis in accounting.

Jan Hess
Vice President
St. Luke’s Hospital

Jan Hess is Vice President and a member of the Senior Administrative Staff at St. Luke’s Hospital.
 
Jan joined St. Luke’s Hospital in 1976 and has served on the Leadership Team for more than 20 years.
 
Jan’s administrative responsibilities include oversight of Quality Management, Case Management, Social Services, Health Information Services, Medical Library, Medical Staff Office, Voice Services, Oncology Services, Marketing and Community Relations.
 
Jan also is the Executive Sponsor of St. Luke’s Spirit of Women initiative, helping improve the quality of life in our community by providing leading health services and community outreach to women and their families.
 
Jan is a graduate of Saint Louis University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Medical Record Administration. She holds a Master’s Degree in Human Resource Management from Washington University.
 
Jan has served in numerous leadership positions in the community and has a passion for children’s advocacy. She has served as a member of the governance board for Chesterfield Day School, the Presbyterian Children’s Services of Missouri and the Family Resource Center of St. Louis.
 
Jan is a recipient of the St. Louis Business Journal’s 2011 Most Influential Business Women Award.

Debra A. Hollingsworth
Regional Vice President - External Affairs
AT&T- Missouri

As Regional Vice President-External Affairs, Debra Hollingsworth manages External Affairs involvement for AT&T and directs public affairs functions for the President of AT&T-Missouri. Her primary responsibilities are overseeing External Affairs, AT&T Employee Political Action Committee, community involvement, third-party relationships, AT&T Foundation grant and charitable giving programs for Missouri.

Since joining the company in 1979, she has held numerous management positions and gained experience in various functions, including marketing, regulatory affairs, network, constituency relations, special services and external affairs.

Her many honors include the 2011 Missourian Award, 2010 Woman of Achievement Award for Community Betterment, 2010 Woman of Distinction Award from Logos School, 2010 Distinguished Service Award from the University of Missouri-St. Louis, 2009 Hellenistic Spirit Athena Award, Zonta Yellow Rose Leadership Award, 2008 St. Louis YWCA Business Leader of Distinction, the 2008 Missouri Community Colleges Association Distinguished Business/Industry Award, being named one of the Twenty-Five Most Influential Business Women in St. Louis in 2004, in 2008 and 2011 being named one of the Most Influential St. Louisans in Business by the St. Louis Business Journal. In addition, Governor Nixon appointed her to the Harris-Stowe State University Board of Regents.

Hollingsworth is a graduate of Leadership St. Louis, Greater Missouri Leadership Challenge and serves as chair Board of Directors of The OASIS Institute of St. Louis, Board of Directors of St. Louis Community College Foundation, Opera Theatre St. Louis, CharacterPlus, Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, National Children's Cancer Society, Teach for America, The United Way of Greater St. Louis and the St. Louis Science Center.

Hollingsworth leads a bipartisan statewide Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Coalition focused on improving student achievement and workforce development.

Hollingsworth is a native of Raton, New Mexico. She earned a bachelor's degree in communications and journalism from West Texas A&M University and a master's degree from Webster University.

In her personal time, Ms. Hollingsworth engages citizens from across the state in STEM initiatives, enjoys traveling with her husband Mark Stacye, and visiting with her two daughters and granddaughters.

Stephanie Leffler
CEO
CrowdSource

Stephanie Leffler draws on a wealth of personal experience born from tackling the mountain of challenges that new and growing businesses must face to become successful. Leffler took on her first CEO role at MonsterCommerce, a leading e-commerce storefront solutions company. After spearheading the sale of MonsterCommerce to Network Solutions, Leffler and her partner Ryan Noble started Juggle.com. Leffler served as the CEO of Juggle during the company’s startup phase. After splitting Juggle into three separate divisions, Leffler took on the role of CEO of CrowdSource, the company’s division that builds world class crowdsourcing solutions.

Peggy Lents
President
Lents & Associates L.L.C.

Peggy I. Lents, President of Lents & Associates L.L.C., founded the company in 1987 to provide strategic and customized marketing, communications and public relations services. Lents & Associates represents a diverse range of for-profit and not-for-profit clients both locally and nationally, including First Bank, one of the largest privately owned banks in the country; and the Missouri Botanical Garden, a National Historic Landmark and a world-renowned center for research, education and horticulture display.
 
Lents is integrally involved in the community and serves on multiple boards. A graduate of Tufts University with a master’s degree in public administration from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, Lents also serves on the Dean’s Alumni Leadership Council for the Kennedy School of Government.

Linda Locke
Principal
Reputare Consulting

Linda Locke retired after dozens of years in corporate life to a consulting career helping companies understand why people hate them. She is principal of Reputare LLC, a consultancy dedicated to helping corporations improve their reputations. In addition she serves as Principal Consultant for evolve24, a business intelligence firm that quantifies the impact of the information environment and the public dialogue on organizations. She retired in 2010 as Senior Vice President/Group Head, Reputation and Issues Management for MasterCard Worldwide, where she served for 14 years in communications leadership roles.
 
At MasterCard, Ms. Locke developed and led the company’s reputation management program, which included the development of metrics, social media, issues management and crisis communication planning.  Before joining MasterCard she spent a decade in corporate communications for banking and technology companies, as well leading political campaigns. She began her professional career as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Morocco, North Africa as a teacher in a small village.

Lisa Lyle
Head of School
Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School (MICDS)

Lisa Lyle has served as Head of School at Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School (MICDS) since July, 2007. MICDS is a co-educational, non-sectarian, college preparatory school serving students in grades junior kindergarten through 12. She has spent her career in education, previously serving as Assistant Head of School at The Blake School in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and on the faculty at The Lawrenceville School in New Jersey.
    
She holds a Master of Arts degree in Private School Leadership from Teachers College at Columbia University in New York, earned a Master of Arts degree in French Literature from the University of Pennsylvania, and received a Bachelor of Arts degree in French from the University of Texas.

She is married to David Sanders and they are the parents of three children.

Virginia McDowell
President and CEO
Isle of Capri Casinos, Inc.

Named Gaming Executive of the Year for 2009 by Casino Journal Magazine, Virginia McDowell has always performed at the top of her game. Among the top ten publicly-traded gaming corporations, she is the only female president and CEO. Virginia has served as president and CEO for Isle of Capri Casinos, Inc. since July 2007. Previously, she worked in the Atlantic City market before joining Argosy Gaming Company in Alton, Ill. From 2005 through 2007, Virginia served as executive VP and CIO for Trump Entertainment Resorts, Inc.
 
Virginia currently serves on the Board of Directors at Haven House St. Louis. She was the founding board chair and president of Gilda’s Club St. Louis, and previously served as president of AMC Cancer Research. She was also a founding member of Winning Women. Currently she serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of Saint Louis University and is also a member of the Regional Business Council, sits on the board at Churchill Center & School, and is an advisory board member of the St. Louis Crisis Nursery. Within the gaming industry, Virginia sits on the Board of Directors for the American Gaming Association and the board of trustees of the National Center for Responsible Gaming. She also currently serves as co-chair of the national Global Gaming Women Initiative.
 
Among the many awards she’s received, the St. Louis Business Journal named her one of the Most Influential St. Louisans in 2011. She was named by the YWCA as a Leader of Distinction in 2010. She was presented with a “Lifetime Achievement Award” at the Casino Marketing industry conference and was honored as one of the 2008 Winning Women Regional Economic Development Award winners. In 2007, she was named one of Casino Enterprise Management magazine's "Great Women of Gaming.”

Patricia L. (Pat) Mercurio
President
Bank of America Missouri

Pat Mercurio is president of Bank of America in Missouri. In this role, she is responsible for coordinating and integrating all product and service capabilities for all lines of business in Missouri, ensuring the delivery of the full resources of Bank of America to clients and communities across the state. She serves as the senior banking executive for community and civic activities in the market. In addition, Mercurio serves as Missouri/Southern Illinois market executive for Middle Market Banking. Mercurio earned a bachelor’s degree from Southern Illinois University in 1972. Active in the local community, Mercurio serves on the executive committee of the United Way Board of Directors and a member of Civic Progress. Past boards she served on are St. Louis Children’s Hospital board of trustees, the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, the St. Louis Zoo board of trustees, the University of Missouri-St. Louis Chancellor’s Council and served as President on the Board of Directors of Variety The Children’s Charity of St. Louis.

Katharine H. Mikulec, MD
Endocrinology
Director of The Osteoporosis Center
St. Luke's Hospital

Dr. Mikulec received her Bachelor of Arts from Yale University, and her medical degree from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. After completing a residency in Internal Medicine and a fellowship in Endocrinology at Stanford University Medical Center, she went to Brigham and Women’s Hospital for a fellowship in Osteoporosis.

Dr. Mikulec is board certified in Endocrinology and is a member of the American Society of Bone and Mineral Research and the International Society for Clinical Densitometry.  

Andrea Moyer, MD, FACC
Cardiology
St. Luke's Hospital

Dr. Moyer specializes in invasive, non-interventional cardiology and is in practice at Cardiac Specialists of St. Luke's. Dr. Moyer received her medical degree from the University of Vermont. She completed an internship and a residency in internal medicine at the George Washington University in Washington, D.C. She also completed a cardiovascular fellowship at Saint Louis University.  

Before joining Cardiac Specialists of St. Luke's, Dr. Moyer had offices located in St. Louis and St. Charles counties. She is board certified in internal medicine, cardiovascular medicine, adult echocardiography and nuclear cardiology. Dr. Moyer has special interests in coronary artery disease, heart failure, cardiac arrhythmia, cardiac imaging and women's heart health.  

Brenda Newberry
Principal, Nesher, LLC
Retired CEO and Chairman, The Newberry Group, Inc.

The Newberry Group, Inc. which is a global IT consultancy specializing in cyber security and founded in1996.  In 1998 it became 100% employee-owned.  The company received many local and national awards including several years on the Inc 500 and Deloitte-Touche National Technology 500.  Ms. Newberry is a sought after national speaker on topics of leadership, board service, business, diversity, entrepreneurship and life management.   As a result, she formed Nesher LLC in 2009. She and her husband also founded Aigle Property Management, LLC and Aquila Property Management, LLC in 2010 to manage real estate holdings.
 
Newberry also serves on the Boards of The Laclede Group, Inc. (NYSE: LG) and Enterprise Financial Services Corporation (NASDQ: EFSC).  
 
She also serves on several non-profit boards:  Webster University (Board Chair), United Way of Greater St. Louis, SSM Healthcare, Washington University School of Engineering National Council, Innovate St. Louis and several others. Previous boards: Regional Business Council (RBC), Regional Commerce and Growth Association (RCGA), St. Louis Forum (Past President), United Services for the Disabled (Past President), and Mathew-Dickey Boys’ and Girls’ Club to name a few.

Kathy Osborn
Executive Director
Regional Business Council

Kathleen T. Osborn is Executive Director of the Regional Business Council.  Osborn spearheaded the establishment of the Council which unites and civically engages CEOs of large companies, most of which are headquartered in the St. Louis region.  The Council’s mission is to act on high impact business, civic and philanthropic initiatives in order to build a highly competitive and world-class region in which to live and do business.

As a frequent speaker, Osborn has received a host of distinguished awards and she serves on a variety of business and civic boards. She received both her undergraduate and graduate degrees from UMSL.  In addition, she earned a postgraduate certificate from the Institute for Education Management at Harvard University.

Vicki Pohlman
Founder and CEO
PohlmanUSA Court Reporting

After working eight years as a court reporter in Illinois, Vicki Pohlman founded PohlmanUSA in 1990.  Today, with offices in St. Louis and Chicago, the deposition and litigation support service provider serves hundreds of law firms across the U.S. and ranks among the nation's leaders in a complex, highly specialized field.   

Pohlman's technology-forward philosophy keeps her Women Business Enterprise- and Green Business-certified firm at the forefront of innovation. Foremost among the firm's many proprietary undertakings are MyCase, a state-of-the-industry case management website; Pohlman Document Services, a new application service provider (ASP) business entity; and a custom file server solution, MyDocServeTM.  

Pohlman, a nationally certified Registered Professional Reporter and a Certified Manager of Reporting Services, is on the board of Women In Charge, a group that provides abused or impoverished women with career counseling, GED and job interview preparation and computer skills. Pohlman also mentors students in her role with the Missouri Court Reporters Association. She is active in the National Court Reporters' Association, the Society for the Technological Advancement of Reporting and the Women Presidents' Organization.

In 2010, Pohlman received the St. Louis Business Journal's 2010 Most Influential Business Women award. In 2011, she was named an Enterprising Woman of the Year by Enterprising Women magazine and recognized by Winning Women with its Women Influencing New Regional Economic
Development Award.

Anika Porter
Founder
Fitness with Anika

Anika Porter is a devoted mother and wife. She is a St. Louis native, a longtime Grace Hill advocate, and a former Women's Business Center student. A graduate of the St. Louis College of Health Careers, she is a master trainer with more than 10,000 hours in training and teaching in the fitness industry. She launched Fitness with Anika in 2007.
 
Anika has taught group exercise classes for Monsanto, Anheuser-Busch, U.S. Postal Service, St. Louis Public Schools, Ameren, Wachovia, Pfizer and Wells Fargo. Anika opened the general session for the St. Louis Business Journal Women’s Conference the past two years with a fitness warm-up, and conducted three post-lunch workout routines for more than 600 women.
 
She has been a guest speaker for Grace Hill Next Level classes and a speaker for Grace Hill's National Association Women Business Owners (NAWBO). She also develops fitness programs for churches and has led an international fitness walk in Sierra Leone, West Africa. Anika organized a Fitness Challenge for the Minority Youth in Construction Program at Washington University and she volunteers for many local fitness events. Her philosophy is "the skills we use + the relationships we choose = our success," by John Maxwell.

Kathleen (Kitty) M. Ratcliffe
President
St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission

Kitty is responsible for the sales and marketing of St. Louis as a destination for visitors and the operations of both the America's Center and Edward Jones Dome, home to the St. Louis Rams. In 2006, she returned to the St. Louis CVC where she was a convention sales executive from 1985-1989.

Kitty has served in Board leadership positions for a number of industry organizations including Destination Marketing Association (DMAI) and the Green Meeting Industry Council. She is a past international Chairwoman of Meeting Professionals International (MPI) and a recipient of their International Supplier of the Year Award. She has received numerous awards and recognition throughout her career, including being named as one of the Most Influential Businesswomen in St. Louis by the St. Louis Business Journal and as a Leader of Distinction by the YMCA of Metro St. Louis.

May Scheve Reardon
Executive Director
Missouri Lottery

As the executive director of the Missouri Lottery since 2009, May Scheve Reardon leads the state agency, which has annual sales in excess of $1 billion and generates more than $259 million annually for Missouri public education programs. As the first woman to hold this position, Reardon brings extensive leadership experience from the financial, nonprofit and government sectors, including serving 12 years as a Missouri state representative. The youngest woman to serve as a member of the Missouri General Assembly, Reardon was term-limited out in 2002, and then served as chair of the Missouri Democratic Party.

Reardon previously worked as an assistant vice president at Regions Morgan Keegan, a private wealth management firm in St. Louis, and she was also director of development at the Richard A. Gephardt Institute for Public Service at Washington University in St. Louis. In addition, Reardon taught political science and communications at Webster University from 2005-2009 with former Governor Bob Holden.

A native of St. Louis, Reardon holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from Saint Louis University and a master’s degree in communications from Webster University. She currently serves on the executive board of the North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries (NASPL), as the Region III Director, and the executive board of the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL), as chair of the Finance and Audit Committee.

Reardon currently lives in St. Louis with her husband, Tim, and their three children.