SAVE CLIENT $10M

To learn more about the Centennial Pond/Perkett Ditch project, visit our website at www.ackerman-estvold.com/projects

Vicki Karpyak

Senior Vice President and Director of Operations

First International Bank & Trust Watford City, N.D.

Vicki Karpyak started her career with First International Bank & Trust in 1974, after graduating from Watford City High School. Throughout her career, she worked as a bookkeeper, teller, loan assistant, consumer lender and internal auditor.

In 2014, she was named director of operations, a position from which she oversees the bank’s entire operating function including deposit operations, loan operations, corporate operations, customer care, Bank Secrecy Act, Automatic Clearing House operations, and bookkeeping.

Karpyak earned her Certified Community Bank Internal Auditor designation from the Independent Community Bankers of America, formerly Independent Bankers Association of America.

She currently serves as a member of the First Lutheran Church Trust committee and was previously active in the McKenzie County Hockey Club.

She lives in Watford City with her husband, Dale.

Kristi Huber President

United Way of Cass-Clay Fargo, N.D.

Kristi Huber has served as president of United Way of Cass-Clay since May 2016. She is passionate about bringing groups and resources together to develop innovative solutions to bridge community challenges. During her tenure, United Way has developed valuable collaborations focused on meeting workforce needs, including connecting individuals with supportive skills training and creating awareness and action around the importance of quality, affordable child care as a dual-generational strategy.

As a connector, Huber serves as a mentor for Concordia College Offutt School of Business students. As a volunteer, she serves as the Women Connect Committee Chair for The Chamber of Fargo Moorhead West Fargo and is a member of the Fargo Inc. editorial board.

She previously served in volunteer roles with the Concordia College Alumni Association Board, as an advisor for Women’s Startup Weekend and as a Big Brother Big Sister mentor. Huber is a graduate of Concordia College in Moorhead, Minn., and earned her MBA from University of Mary in Bismarck, N.D. She and her husband, Gregg, live in West Fargo and are avid hockey fans.

Dori Leslie

President/vice president

CHI Friendship Fargo, N.D.

Dori Leslie started her career at CHI Friendship in 1997 as a day supports supervisor. She held that position until she was promoted to be program manager for the children’s group home. After other promotions, she now serves as the president/vice president for CHI Friendship.

Leslie is an advocate for the vulnerable population to live and work within their communities. Her personal mission is to ensure people of all different ability levels have the best quality of life possible. She sees her role as making sure services are not interrupted for the people CHI Friendship supports, and to help raise the bar for those supports to be of the highest quality.

In November, she received an Arc of Justice Award from the North Dakota Human Rights Coalition. Leslie graduated from Bemidji State University with a degree in physical and special education, and recently received a master’s degree in leadership from the University of Jamestown.

As a leader, she says, her job is to communicate and negotiate effectively, embrace diversity, follow all the ethical rules, be forgiving, and most of all, be servant to those she serves.

Ann McConn Executive Vice President and Chief Business Officer Alerus Fargo, N.D.

Ann McConn has more than 25 years of financial services industry experience and has spent the past 15 years at Alerus. As executive vice president and chief business officer, she is responsible for the overall leadership and success of Alerus’ sales, service and product management areas. She previously served as president of the Fargo-West Fargo market and executive director of Alerus’ wealth management, retirement and benefits divisions.

McConn is a past board member at the United Way of Cass-Clay, Greater Fargo Moorhead Economic Development Corp., the Downtown Community Partnership, Hope Lutheran Foundation and the Rape and Abuse Crisis Center. She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Colorado Boulder, a law degree from the University of North Dakota, a master’s degree in business from Minnesota State University Moorhead and is a Chartered Financial Analyst and a Certified Financial Planner.

McConn and her husband, Butch, have two adult children, Brad and Suzanne.

Liza McLean

Co-owner, Smiling Moose Deli franchises Grand Forks, N.D.

Raised on fourth generation family farm near Reynolds, N.D., Liza McLean grew up knowing she wanted to take a risk and start her own small business. After receiving her bachelor’s degree in business administration from North Dakota State University, her time at Walgreens and at Kilbourne Group set McLean on a path to entrepreneurship.

McLean and her business partner, Nathan Everson, have grown their company to become the largest multi-unit operators in the franchise, with more than 100 employees and seven locations combined.

McLean is a franchisee of Smiling Moose Deli (Grand Forks, Watford City, N.D., Williston, N.D., and Eau Claire, Wis.) and Dunn Brothers Coffee (Bismarck, N.D.).

McLean and her husband, Mike, and daughter, Maria, live in Grand Forks.

In Williston, McLean received the 2016 Woman Owned Business of Year award. She served as a board member of Mon-Dak United Way and is currently serving as a board member of Evolve in Grand Forks.

Sarah Meusburger

Human Resources Director

Banner Associates

Brookings, S.D.

With nearly 15 years of experience in human resources, Sarah Meusburger has valuable experience both in the private and public sectors. In 2015, she began working as a consultant for Alternative HRD and as the HR director for Banner Associates, Inc.

Before that, she had gained experience with local government entities as well as the South Dakota Board of Regents.

She has earned two senior professional certifications (Senior Professional in Human Resources and Society for Human Resource ManagementSenior Certified Professional) and has had several articles published in the past year.

In 2017, she spearheaded South Dakota Week of Giving, a community and state-wide giving initiative that was supported by South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard.

Meusburger received her undergraduate degree from South Dakota State University and is a graduate student in public administration at the University of South Dakota.

Michelle Miller KLJ

Human Resources Divisional Director Bismarck, N.D.

Michelle Miller began her career at KLJ as a human resources assistant nearly eight years ago. She quickly advanced within the team, becoming a recruiter and recruiting manager. She has since been promoted to human resources divisional director.

In this role, Miller works closely with executives to help make strategic decisions within the company, while still leading the recruiting team and being an influential player in several groups across the organization.

Miller earned a master’s and bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Mary in Bismarck. She is a founding member of the BisMan Power of 100 organization and is actively involved in Leadership Bismarck/Mandan as well as Burleigh County’s Senior Adults and Home Delivered Meals programs.

She has volunteered in elementary classrooms to further STEM education and on an employee advisory committee at a local university.

Miller and her husband, Jason, have two children, O’Malley and Finley.

Cris Oehler

Vice President, Public Relations, Otter Tail Power Co. Vice President, Corporate Communication, Otter Tail Corp. Fergus Falls, Minn.

Since 1994, Cris Oehler has been leading communication strategy for Otter Tail Power Co., an Otter Tail Corp. subsidiary. In 2014, she began serving a dual role as a vice president at both entities.

Her role includes overseeing Otter Tail’s grant programs, which help to support rural communities. Oehler also spearheads Otter Tail Women Networking and Integrating Talent, or OWN IT, an initiative to provide leadership training for women and increase awareness of unintended bias in the workplace.

Alexis Odden graduated from Minnesota State University Moorhead in 2003 with a bachelor’s degree in finance and a minor in accounting. She worked as an intern for an investment advisor during her senior year of college.

In 2006, she passed her Series 6 and Series 7 tests and became an investment advisor with Investment Centers of America, where she owned her book of business. She sold her business in 2009 and went to work for Eide Bailly, where she started as an intern and worked her way up to be an audit manager in 2015.

She passed her CPA testing in 2014 and has a background in audits of employee benefit plans and affordable housing partnerships, while specializing in cost certifications for tax credit projects.

She currently serves as a board member and treasurer for the Fargo Public Schools Development Foundation Board. She is involved in Eide Bailly’s First Focus facilitators group, whose mission is to improve the advancement and retention of women.

In her community, Oehler serves on the Women’s Leadership Council, a United Way committee that raises money to provide age-appropriate books to children. She also recently moderated a sold-out panel discussion about human trafficking in rural Minnesota as part of Conversations that Matter, a series WLC developed to highlight community concerns.

A native of Devils Lake, N.D., Oehler earned her bachelor’s degree from Minnesota State University Moorhead and a master’s degree from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul. She was an educator in the Fergus Falls, Minn., public school system from 1980 to 1994, earning the Minnesota Middle Level Educator of the Year Award in 1993.

Erin Ostler Vice President of Sales

Adynamic and accomplished sales leader, Erin Ostler is passionate about building high performing teams.

Ostler specializes in fostering strategic customer partnerships in complex industries that often involve buy-sell relationships. Her entrepreneurial roots as well as her broad vision and insights contribute to her ability to help customers succeed.

With more than 20 years in the technology industry, Ostler is skilled in a variety of sales environments including enterprise, wholesale, SMB, B2B and indirect channels. Her knowledge base includes broadband, cable, wireless, converged, M2M/IoT, CLEC, ILEC and MVNO businesses.

Ostler has spent the past two years at Midco and serves as vice president of sales over consumer and business and Customer Experience Centers. Before coming to Midco, she spent 16 years at Sprint, where she was a multi-year Presidents Circle honoree.and held several executive roles, culminating as director of the Emerging and Wholesale Solutions group.

Before Sprint, Ostler founded two successful startup technology firms specializing in expanding hospitality and business profit centers.

Tari Rayala graduated with her art and design undergraduate degree from the University of WisconsinStout and her master’s degree in architecture from University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Upon graduation, she moved to Duluth, where she became a licensed architect in Minnesota in 2006. Among other positions, she served as city architect for the city of Duluth.

Rayala currently is the architectural team leader for Karvakko in Bemidji, where she leads the design team on projects for the Bemidji Regional Airport, Bemidji area housing, Headwaters Science Center and the East Polk Heritage Center Historic Museum.

She is a past president of the American Institute of Architects Minnesota Northern Chapter, a LEED Accredited Professional, a Certified Professional Project Manager and a Construction Documents Technologist.

In Duluth, she graduated from Leadership Duluth and served as a member of Eco-Rotary, on the executive board of the St. Louis River Alliance and as president of the Fond du Lac Community Club. She enjoys mentoring emerging professional architects and spends her free time kayaking Lake Superior and canoeing the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness with her husband and two sons.

After thirty-six years, Cindy Schreiber-Beck, Wahpeton, recently became an involved prior owner of Tri-State Aviation, Inc. Founded by her late husband, the company will continue as a fixed base operation with manufacturing capabilities and a concentration on World War II aircraft restoration with an international presence.

Schreiber-Beck is the president of CinderWhit Co., which produces wood turnings for porches and stairways. She credits her business success to remarkable mentors and talented co-workers.

Schreiber-Beck served on many boards including North Dakota State College of Science Foundation, Bremer Bank Alexandria and the Fargo Air Museum. Currently, she chairs the North Dakota Aeronautics Commission, is the executive director of the North Dakota Agricultural Aviation Association, participates on a local youth substance abuse coalition, serves on the North Dakota University System Foundation and represents District 25 in the North Dakota Legislature.

As an angel investor, she appreciates the opportunity to mentor young entrepreneurs.

Lorena Starkey began her career in sales and marketing, quickly becoming noticed by a new hotel developer in Minot as an opening-team director of sales for the Hyatt House Minot in 2013. She rose from director of sales to general manager that year and has led her team at Hyatt House Minot ever since. Together, she and her team at Hyatt House Minot have achieved the No. 1 Hotel in Minot for three years in a row and most recently the No. 1 Best Place to Work.

In 2016, Starkey was a founding member of Connect Minot, a local entrepreneurial meet-up group in Minot. She is on the YWCA Women’s Homeless Shelter board and is a board member at Visit Minot, a Chamber Ambassador and a Community Investment Advisor at the Minot Area Community Foundation. She continues to volunteer for public art projects, community leadership initiatives and marketing projects, while focusing her attention on building leaders within her own organization.

Brooke Swier Schloss began her legal career by joining her brother’s law firm, Swier Law Firm, in 2010. She has been instrumental in Swier Law becoming one of the Northern Plains’ fastest growing law firms.

Swier Schloss leads Swier Law’s family law practice group and has authored several books on family law issues. She is a member of the South Dakota Bar Association, the South Dakota Bar Association Family Law Committee, the Mount Marty Alumni Council and Swier Law’s “Future Leaders” Scholarship Committee.

She has been nationally recognized as a Super Lawyers “Rising Star” and a “Top Attorney Under the Age of 40.”

Swier Schloss earned her bachelor’s degree from Mount Marty College in Yankton, S.D., her education specialist degree in school psychology from the University of South Dakota and her Juris Doctor degree from the University of South Dakota School of Law.

Karen Thingelstad is the first female vice president in Minnkota Power Cooperative’s history. In her 25-year career at the Grand Forks-based electric utility, Thingelstad has progressed from an entry-level accountant to one of the organization’s top leaders.

In her current role as vice president and CFO, she oversees a diverse set of departments, including finance and accounting, procurement, human resources, print and mailing services, fleet management, safety and security and buildings and grounds.

Thingelstad is active in the community as an Altru Health Foundation board director, Minnkota employee Political Action Committee board director and member of Sharon Lutheran Church. She also volunteers with many organizations in the Greater Grand Forks area.

Thingelstad earned her bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of North Dakota and is a Certified Public Accountant.

As executive director of the Devils Lake Area Chamber of Commerce, Paula Vistad works with local government and statewide agencies to advocate for Devils Lake and North Dakota.

Vistad and the chamber are playing a leading role in Devils Lake’s downtown revitalization effort. The Chamber also has been a force behind the community campaign to keep Devils Lake dollars local and educate the community on the importance of shopping local.

Devils Lake has many events throughout the year, either put on by the Chamber or with the support of the

Chamber/Tourism. Vistad and her team started up a monthly educational series called “Coffee & Collaborate,” inviting business people to enjoy coffee and cookies while listening to a different educational topic each month.

Vistad studied art and later business law at the University of North Dakota and started her business career with State Farm Insurance. Four months after they were married, Vistad and her husband, State Farm Agent Kevin Vistad, opened up their own agency in Devils Lake.

Vistad is the president of the local Rotary chapter and sits on the board of The Lake Region Heritage Center.

Billi Jo Zielinski President and CEO

Make-A-Wish North Dakota Fargo,

N.D.

Aself-described “Jill of all trades,” Billi Jo Zielinski has more than 25 years of volunteer and professional experience in business, government and nonprofit sectors.

For the past four years, she has had the privilege of leading the Make-A-Wish North Dakota team who together create life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses.

Before this role, Zielinski was the chief operating officer for Minnesota Community Measurement, an organization dedicated to accelerating health improvement by publicly reporting health care information. She served in Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s administration as assistant commissioner at the Department of Human Services as well as deputy director of federal affairs in Washington. She also worked for U.S. Rep. Jim Ramstad, R-Minn., in Washington, served along with her husband in the Peace Corps as a business volunteer in Turkmenistan and worked in the steel manufacturing industry in Fargo.

Zielinski received her political science degree from Minnesota State University Moorhead, where she currently gives back through the executive mentorship program and in 2015, she received the Distinguished Alumni Award.

Among other titles, she is a mom, wife, survivor, Park Board member, Six Sigma green belt and church volunteer.