Agenda

Speakers | Morning Session

Illinois

Dick Durbin | U.S. Senator – pre recorded
Nikki Budzinski | Senior Advisor to Governor Pritzker

Missouri

Roy Blunt | U.S. Senator – pre recorded
Sam Graves | U.S. Representative
Patrick McKenna | Director Missouri Department of Transportation

Iowa

Kim Reynolds | Governor of the State of Iowa – pre recorded
Charles Grassley | U.S. Senator – pre recorded [president pro tempore of the United States Senate]

Headline

Ray LaHood | Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation and U.S. Representative for Illinois 18^thCongressional District

Mississippi River Update

Mike Klingner | Chair, Upper Mississippi, Illinois, and Missouri Rivers Association
Robert Sinkler | Colonel, U.S. Army, retired of the Army Corps of Engineers

John Sullivan | Illinois Agriculture Director – Rural Broadband and Connectivity

Broadband Panel | “The Complexity of Connectivity”

Kristi Ray – Moderator – Executive VP, Mount Pleasant Area Chamber Alliance
Tim Fencl – General Manager & CEO, Danville Mutual Telephone Company
Bob Winsel – Chief Operating Officer, Ralls Technologies
Jim Broemmer – Chief Executive Officer, Adams Fiber (Adams Telephone Co-Operative)

Speakers | Afternoon Session

Awards & Recognitions

Tom Boland Tri-State Of Mind Award
Outstanding Task Force Award

Workforce Panel | “Developing Our Talent Pipeline | Helping with M.A.T.H.”

Jim Hansen – Moderator | Missouri State Representative & Retired Educator
Brian McGee – Quincy University President
Dr. Lauren Schellenberger – Culver Stockton College Academic Dean
Michael Elbe – John Wood Community College President
Michael Ash – Southeastern Community College President

Workforce + Lobbying | impactful, educational presentations

Dennis Fraise | CEO, Lee County Economic Development Group
Topic: Creating a common workforce language between education, business, and industry

Kyle Moore | Mayor, City of Quincy, IL
Topic: Jobs, jobs, everywhere a job… but where are all the people?!

Jeremy Hess | Director of Economic Development Greater Burlington Partnership
Topic: Integrating Immigration Into Workforce Solutions

Aaron Baker | Vice President, Clout Public Affairs
Topic: The Power of Lobbying

Keynote + Special Guests

Ray LaHood | Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation and U.S. Representative for Illinois 18^thcongressional district

With a 36-year career in public service, Secretary LaHood has extensive experience on major national policy issues, among them transportation and infrastructure. He served as the 16th Department of Transportation Secretary from 2009 to 2013 and quickly became known as a bipartisan leader and skilled conciliator in a highly partisan environment.

Secretary LaHood’s tenure was marked by landmark efforts to improve safety in every mode of transportation, from aviation and rail to pipelines and automobiles. Under his leadership, improvements to America’s infrastructure included building or replacing 350,000 miles of highway, repairing 20,000 bridges and renewing or constructing 6,000 miles of rail track. Secretary LaHood also achieved more stringent fuel efficiency requirements from automakers, took steps to address airline pilot fatigue and turned the problem of distracted driving into a national concern. As Secretary of Transportation, he oversaw an agency with more than 55,000 employees and a US$70 billion budget in charge of air, maritime and surface transportation.

Before heading the US Department of Transportation, Secretary LaHood served from 1995 to 2009 in the US House of Representatives on behalf of the 18th District of Illinois and also served on various House committees, among them the powerful House Appropriations Committee and the House Intelligence Committee. He served as chief of staff to US House Minority Leader Robert Michel from 1982 to 1994. He was director of the Rock Island County Youth Services Bureau from 1972 to 1974; chief planner of the Bi-States Metropolitan Planning Commission from 1974 to 1977; and district administrative assistant for US Congressman Tom Railsback from 1977 to 1982.

He is married to Kathy LaHood, and they have four children and fifteen grandchildren.

Nikki Budzinski | Senior Advisor to Governor Pritzker

Nikki Budzinski is currently the Senior Advisor to Governor Pritzker. In this role she has helped to lead several significant initiatives including passage of the $15 minimum wage, gaming expansion and the Connect Illinois broadband initiative where she serves as Chair of the Broadband Advisory Council. Prior, Nikki served as Transition Executive Director to Governor-elect Pritzker/Lt. Governor-elect Stratton administration.

She served as Senior Advisor to the JB Pritzker for Governor campaign. Budzinski led JB Pritzker’s exploratory effort for Governor and in her latest role she advised the campaign on political strategy, messaging and outreach. From 2015-2016, Budzinski served as the Labor Campaign Director on Hillary Clinton’s 2016 Presidential Campaign.

Prior, Budzinski worked in the labor movement for ten years in Washington, DC, working for the Laborers International Union of North America, International Association of Fire Fighters and finally serving as Associate Director of the Legislative and Political Action Department of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union. Budzinski is a Peoria native and is a graduate of the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign. Nikki is also a graduate of the Harvard Trade Union executive program in Cambridge, Massachusetts and Governor Jim Edgar’s Fellow program.

Sam Graves | U.S. Representative – Missouri

Patrick McKenna | Director, Missouri Department of Transportation

Patrick K. McKenna became Director of the Missouri Department of Transportation in December of 2015. As director of MoDOT, Mr. McKenna oversees all operations of the department.

Prior to coming to Missouri, he served as the deputy commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Transportation. Mr. McKenna also spent 13 years in Washington, D.C. working in the United States Senate, serving as chief financial officer among other positions.

Mr. McKenna was elected to a one-year term as president of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) in October of 2019. The previous year, he served as vice president of the association and chair of the Strategic Management Committee and Transportation Policy Forum during the development of AASHTO’s surface transportation reauthorization policy. He is also a member of AASHTO’s executive committee.

Mr. McKenna served as president of the Mid America Association of Transportation Officials from 2017-2018. He is a member of the executive committee for the National Academy of Science’s Transportation Research Board (TRB), a national group that provides innovative, research-based solutions to improve transportation. TRB is a division of the National Research Council of the United States which serves as an independent adviser to the president of the United States of America, Congress and federal agencies on scientific and technical questions of national importance.

Mr. McKenna has a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from Bentley College and a Master of Science in Management and Finance from the University of Maryland University College.

He and his wife, Suzanne, have two sons, Patrick Jr. and Connor, and a daughter, Kelsey.

Mississippi River Update

Mike Klingner | Chair, Upper Mississippi, Illinois, and Missouri Rivers Association

Topic: Without Flood Control, Nothing Else Matters

Robert Sinkler | Colonel, U.S. Army, retired of the Army Corps of Engineers

Topic: Creating a Port For the Tri-State Region

Michael D. Klingner | PE, Chairman, Upper Mississippi, Illinois & Missouri Rivers Associates (UMIMRA)

Mike, the President and CEO of Klingner & Associates, P.C., is the Chairman of the Upper Mississippi, Illinois & Missouri Rivers Association (UMIMRA), a non-governmental organization representing flood control issues for the Upper Mississippi River Valley: Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Mr. Klingner has over 40 years of experience in the engineering and construction fields and has presented flood control issues at numerous Congressional and Senate hearings in Washington, D.C. Mr. Klingner was instrumental in the development of the comprehensive plan to address flood control improvements, including flood management and mitigation for the Upper Mississippi and Illinois rivers, as recommended by the Mississippi River Commission in 2008. He has extensive experience in various engineering fields, such as drainage and flood control, environmental, recreation, water and wastewater, site planning, Geographic Information Systems, and renewable energy. He is licensed in four states and has been Project Manager for numerous multimillion-dollar projects involving multi-participant, intergovernmental agreements including nonprofit organizations. He is the Chairman of the MVFCA Engineering Committee for 2018 – 2019.

Robert “Bob” Sinkler is currently a Senior Advisor at Dawson & Associates, the nation’s premier firm for resolving complex challenges involving Federal water resources and environmental regulatory policy and procedures. Most recently Bob was the Vice President, Technology and Commercialization in the Environment Sector at INTREXON Corporation. INTREXON provides technology solutions to leading companies for the creation and deployment of biologically-based products that address some of the world’s most pressing challenges.

Previously, Bob was the director of water infrastructure for The Nature Conservancy’s North America Water Program. In this position, he and his team focused on implementing interagency integrated water resources management in large watersheds, —particularly with the nation’s largest river systems.

Prior to joining the Conservancy, Bob served as principle strategic advisor to the Chief of Engineers and Commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), where he assisted the Chief of Engineers in setting the strategic direction for USACE, the world’s largest public engineering, design, and construction management agency.

Rural Broadband

John Sullivan | Illinois Agriculture Director – Rural Broadband and Connectivity

John has been involved in agriculture his entire life. Born and raised on a farm in western Illinois, he currently lives with his wife, Joan, on the family-owned and operated farm just north of Rushville in Schuyler County. For 20 years, John was a partner in his family’s real estate and auction business.

In 2002, John successfully ran for the Illinois State Senate, representing the 47th Senate District from 2003 to 2017. The 47th District is the largest Senate district in the state, including all or parts of 13 western Illinois counties. During his time in the Senate, John served as chairman of the Senate Agriculture and Conservation committee and worked on many issues that affect farmers and agriculture.

John and his wife Joan have four children, three daughters-in-law, and seven grandchildren.

Broadband Panel | “The Complexity of Connectivity”

As rural communities, we need broadband to connect with the rest of the world, and we all want it faster. But unfortunately, rural areas in the Midwest are lagging far behind the rest of the nation when it comes to connectivity and broadband. This panel of local internet service providers will talk about why it’s difficult to service rural areas and will educate us on some of the new initiatives happening that might positively affect connectivity in the Tri-State area.

Kristi Ray – Moderator
Tim Fencl – General Manager & CEO, Danville Mutual Telephone Company
Bob Winsel – Chief Operating Officer, Ralls Technologies
Jim Broemmer – Chief Executive Officer, Adams Fiber (Adams Telephone Co-Operative)

Kristi Ray | Executive Vice President, Mount Pleasant Area Chamber Alliance

Kristi Ray has more than 30 years of experience in the chamber of commerce industry. Ray currently serves as the Executive Vice President of the Mount Pleasant Area Chamber Alliance which encompasses the chamber of commerce, area development commission, main street program and tourism.

Before relocating to Iowa, Ray served as the Executive Vice President of the Columbia MO Chamber of Commerce. She has an extensive background in chamber management serving as the Director of Chamber Relations and the Director of Leadership Missouri for the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Kristi worked diligently to strengthen the relations between the state and local Chambers of Commerce. She has a vast background in legislative affairs, economic development and member relations.

This is not the first time Ray has called Iowa home. She had served as the President of the Cedar Falls, IA Chamber of Commerce from 1997-2001.

Kristi is a graduate of Truman State University in Kirksville, MO and has also completed the US Chamber of Commerce Institute for Organizational Management program at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX. She was very active in the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives receiving the Certified Chamber Executive recognition in 2011. She is an active Rotarian and is proud to be a Paul Harris Fellow.

Tim Fencl is the General Manager & CEO at Danville Mutual Telephone Company. Danville Mutual telephone is a Telecommunications and Fiber provider in Des Moines and Lee counties in Iowa. Mr. Fencl has 30 years of experience in Telecommunications. He began his career in the United States Army after briefly studying at the University of Northern Iowa. He was honorably discharged from the Army after 12 years. He went to work for the cellular provider iWireless until 2010. He then joined Danville Mutual Telephone as the Wireless Manager and was promoted to the General Manager and CEO in March of 2013.

Mr. Fencl is an active member and Past Chairman of the Greater Burlington Partnership’s Chamber of Commerce, the Vice President of the Danville Enhancement Committee, an active director of the Burlington Golf Club, and serves on the Legislative Committee for the Iowa Communications Alliance. He has served on the Business Retention & Expansion Committee, the Greater Burlington Leadership Committee, and the Greater Burlington Area Development Foundation Board. He lives in rural Danville with his wife Ellen. They have three adult children, a son-in-law, and two grandchildren.

Bob Winsel received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration from Hannibal LaGrange along with a CCNP certification from Cisco.

Bob began his career with Ralls County Electric Cooperative in 2004 as a system administrator responsible for network design and operation of their ISP services through Ralls Technologies LLC, which provided point-to-multipoint wireless internet and satellite services to over five counties in Northeast Missouri.

In early 2010, RCEC was awarded a federal loan/grant to build a fiber to the home network within our electric service territory. As of 2014 the fiber project has been fully completed delivering full triple play services to each and every one of our members. RCEC also utilizes the fiber network for SCADA, AMI, and have future plans for further smart grid technologies. RCEC continues to build fiber out to other neighboring communities around our area to this date.

Bob was named Chief Operating Officer of Ralls Technologies LLC in 2015. Ralls Technologies is located in New London, Missouri and currently has around 3700 customers in five different counties.

Jim Broemmer is the CEO of Adams Telephone Co-Operative and its subsidiaries that includes Adams Fiber, www.followthefiber.net. Adams is a full service telecommunications company in Illinois offering phone, video, internet, and more in its thirteen exchange incumbent telephone service area along with a strong focus of expanding fiber-to-the-home services in edge-out communities now offering Gigabit internet services to twenty-eight communities in west central Illinois. Broemmer joined Adams in March of 1993. Before becoming CEO in 2003 Broemmer held the positions of Assistant Manager, Office Manager and Comptroller.

Broemmer has been a long time resident of Quincy where he was born and raised and currently resides with his family. He has served on a number of board and committees in the region including Great River Economic Development Foundation, United Way of Adams County, and Adams County Comprehensive Planning Committee. He also currently serves on a number of industry boards at the state and federal level including the Illinois Rural Broadband Association, Illinois Telecommunications Association, Illinois Telephone Cooperative Association, Services Management Corporation of NTCA-The Rural Broadband Association, and Rural Independent Competitive Alliance.

Workforce + Lobbying

Workforce Panel | “Developing Our Talent Pipeline | Helping with M.A.T.H.”

(Manufacturing, Agriculture, Transportation & Healthcare)

As business in our region continue to grow, training, maintaining and recruiting workforce is priority. The panel will discuss what our education institutes are doing not only to prepare students for the workforce, but also to retain students in our community to work regional, in demand jobs.

Jim Hansen – Moderator | Missouri State Representative & Retired Educator
Brian McGee – Quincy University President
Dr. Lauren Schellenberger – Culver Stockton College Academic Dean
Michael Elbe – John Wood Community College President
Michael Ash – Southeastern Community College President

Jim Hansen | Missouri State Representative & Retired Educator

Rep. Jim Hansen, a Republican, represents parts of Ralls, Monroe, Lincoln, and Pike counties (District 40). He was elected to his first two-year term in November 2012.

In addition to his legislative duties, Rep. Hansen retired in 2002 as Vice-President of the State Farm Insurance office in Columbia, Missouri. He was elected to serve on the Hannibal School Board in 1980. Currently, Rep. Hansen is a member of Home Care/Hospice Foundation Board, Pike County Health Department, and the Adiel Baptist Church. Rep. Hansen also served in the U.S. Army.

Rep. Hansen graduated from Hannibal High School in 1965. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree in 1969 from University of Arizona and a Masters in Secondary Education.

Born January 24, 1947, in Hannibal, Rep. Hansen resides in Frankford with his wife, Cindy. They have three children: Erin, Brad, and Brett.

Impactful, educational presentations

IOWA | Creating a Common Workforce Language Between Education, Business, and Industry

Dennis Fraise | CEO, Lee County Economic Development Group

Successful workforce development efforts require strong collaborations between education, business, and industry. Yet it seems as if these groups are speaking entirely different languages and don’t know how to work together. This program will highlight some creative, innovative, and unique ideas that you can implement to build a common language and connect the dots between these groups.

“Our economies and workforces are becoming increasingly more regional. The Tri-State Development Summit brings together 3 States, 36 Counties and 100s of Leaders impacting 700,000 plus people. It’s a great way for all of us to gain new insights and a better perspective on our challenges and opportunities.” – Dennis Fraise

As CEO, Senior Economic Developer, Dennis is responsible for development Lee County EDG’s strategic plan including the development and implementation of a comprehensive marketing and communications strategy for economic development in Lee County. Dennis has economic development experience as Director of Business Services for Louisa Development Group and a marketing background providing mobile website solutions, creative services and results driven marketing.

ILLINOIS | Jobs, Jobs, Everywhere a Job… But Where Are All The People?!

Kyle Moore | Mayor, City of Quincy, IL

The challenges of economic development in our cities are constantly changing. Today, nearly every sector in our economy is hiring, yet our region continues to struggle to find people to take advantage of those opportunities. Our focus has shifted from business growth and development, to a multi-faceted strategy including talent attraction and retention. In order to fill the demand for skilled workers, our communities must innovate, find new ways to grow in population, maintain their talent pool, or slowly become a less desirable place to live. Understand what has worked in the City of Quincy, what hasn’t, and how despite unprecedented public and private investment, Quincy will launch a new effort to increase their population.

“One only needs to take a drive between Quincy, Hannibal, Keokuk, Burlington, Macomb and you will see the direct impact the Tri-State Summit has had on our region. The Summit brings together leaders to forge common goals, to harness our lobbying efforts that have lead to substantive and dramatic changes to our transportation network, housing stock and tourism industry. As leaders, we thrive when we learn from one another, when we support one another, and when we reach beyond today and into tomorrow. The Tri-State Summit makes all of that possible.” – Kyle Moore

Born in Quincy, Kyle Moore was raised in a family where hard work and community service was the measure of a good citizen. Kyle graduated fromQuincy University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management. After college, Kyle became a part owner and Vice President of Moore’s Floors Inc.

He was a “Big Brother” for the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program for 12 years. He was a board member of the West Central Illinois Big Brothers/Big Sisters from 2005-2011, serving as their Board President from 2008-2010.

In 2009, Kyle decided that he wanted to serve the community in an elected capacity. He decided to run for Alderman. Kyle was elected to the position, defeating a 16-year incumbent with 58% of the vote.

In 2013, Kyle ran for Mayor of Quincy. He was elected to the position, defeating a two-term incumbent with 56% of the vote. He was the first Republican elected mayor since 1981. His first term accomplishments include starting the Quincy Promise Program, a privately funded community college scholarship program, passing the first structurally balanced city budget since 1999, and doubling investments in infrastructure.

On April 4^th, 2017, Kyle was elected to his second term as Mayor.

IOWA | Integrating Immigration Into Workforce Solutions

Jeremy Hess | Director of Economic Development, Greater Burlington Partnership

With historically low unemployment, successfully attracting new talent requires communities to intentionally pursue and entice people from all over the country and around the world. Making your business and your community a welcoming and inclusive destination for immigrants who long for a shot at the American dream can be a winning solution for everyone. Work ethic, strong families ties, and a desire for new opportunities are attractive traits that are prevalent in many immigrant communities. I’ll share some experiences and ideas on how (and how not) to develop a talent pipeline of incoming peoples to grow our payrolls and our population.

“Coming together as a region is critical for our shared future! While there are always slight variations in the challenges we face, generally the solutions you have found successful will help our local community succeed as well. That’s why gathering for this Summit is a must for all of us in the Tri-State region. We are always stronger together!” – Jeremy Hess

Jeremy Hess loves serving as the Director of Economic Development at the Greater Burlington Partnership. Just ask him! Jeremy is one of those “high energy, extremely upbeat, anything is possible” type people. With a diverse background of experiences, and 16 years of community involvement – Jeremy brings a ton of relationships to an already winning area for the Partnership.

He will tell you that his role in Economic Development is pretty straight forward. “My position exists for 2 reasons… 1). – to do whatever is needed to create & retain good paying jobs in our area, and 2). – to grow the tax base in Greater Burlington. That’s it.“

After being raised in an “ever-relocating” Military family, and after 5 years of Active Duty service himself in the United States Air Force, Jeremy has lived in 8 states and 4 foreign countries. Coming to the Burlington area in 1999 with his wife Mindy, they both knew they had found the right place to sink roots. This is home for Jeremy & Mindy, two children, 4 dogs, 2 horses and 1 bearded dragon “who will outlive all of us.”

Jeremy holds Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Northern Colorado, and an Associate’s Degree from the CCAF. Those degrees are not nearly as valuable to him as years in the trenches with fellow Burlingtonians doing whatever they can to improve our city and the lives in it. “Nobody’s ever asks me to show them my degree. They want to see results, they want to know they can trust me.”

MISSOURI | The Power of Lobbying

Aaron Baker | Vice President, Clout Public Affairs

Our state capitols can sometimes feel like a foreign place. However, there are trained professionals that walk the halls every day to promote our region. From this presentation, we will learn how lobbyists help our people and places accomplish their legislative goals.

“The Tri-State area is most effective when it speaks with one voice. By working together and learning best practices, we can continue to make this a better place to live and work.” – Aaron Baker

Aaron Baker’s top skill is knowing real people that have an interest in tough issues. His warm, but direct personality helps clients understand what is happening in the trenches and throughout the management of various projects.

Aaron serves as a Vice President of Clout Public Affairs. He’s Clout’s go-to guy when it comes to managing efforts dealing with neighbors, customers and competitors. If companies have a problem, Aaron can help.

Today, Aaron leads Clout’s efforts with a large portfolio of corporate clients in several states. This includes influencing both public policy and opinion through competition research for corporate clients, campaign and organization management, earned media, grasstops outreach and lobbying. Aaron has worked on campaigns and policies since 2002. He came to Axiom Strategies from the office of United States Congressman Sam Graves (MO-06) and previously worked in the Missouri Senate. Aaron managed the launch of what is today referred to as Clout Public Affairs.

Aaron’s experience in the political landscape includes serving as grassroots director and a spokesperson for statewide campaigns for governor, United States Senate and ballot initiatives. His legislative background includes work in healthcare, utilities, transportation and education reform. In 2016, Aaron was named one of the top ten “game-changers” in Missouri’s campaigns.

A graduate of the University of Missouri, Aaron lives on a farm in Atlanta, Missouri with his wife and four children. The Bakers helped found a non-for-profit ministry in Aaron’s hometown and they are members of the Agriculture Leadership of Tomorrow (ALOT), Farm Bureau, the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association and serve as emergency foster parents.