GENERAL SESSION: American Leadership
During this session, hear from top leaders of distinctly American institutions, foundational to our economy and housing ecosystem. Joining us from the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank, President and CEO Patrick Harker offers his observations on the economy. Updates on the latest priorities and initiatives at housing-focused government agencies are provided by FHFA’s Director Sandra Thompson and FHA Commissioner Julia Gordon.
Speakers
Introductions
Dave Howard is the Executive Vice President of Sales for Origination Services at ServiceLink. He is responsible for developing and executing broad Go-To-Market strategies for new customer acquisition and existing client retention and growth. A financial services industry veteran, Dave has had a variety of applicable experiences to draw on. He has been a software developer, developed and implemented human resources strategies, run product sales teams and sales & marketing operations functions for domestic and international business lines at leading fintech companies. Dave holds a bachelors and MBA from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and is also Vice-chair of the board for Communities in Schools of Pittsburgh-Allegheny County.
Moderator
Laura Escobar is the 2024 MBA Chair-Elect and President of Lennar Mortgage. A 30-year mortgage industry veteran, Escobar has held leadership positions with both bank-owned and independent mortgage companies overseeing all aspects of mortgage banking, including production, operations, compliance, accounting, and training. Her personal ground level experience in every facet of mortgage lending has enabled her to manage and fully integrate all of these departments within Lennar Mortgage. Escobar is highly engaged in the industry, serves on MBA’s Board of Directors, and was co-chair of MBA’s IMB Executive Council from 2020–2022. She is also a director of the MBA Opens Doors Foundation, which she has supported by successfully fundraising for the foundation’s work and leading Lennar in company campaigns. Beyond her industry work, she is also a licensed mental health counselor and devotes much of her time to working with underprivileged women.
Featured Speakers
Rohit Chopra is Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The CFPB is a unit of the Federal Reserve System charged with protecting families and honest businesses from illegal practices by financial institutions, and ensuring that markets for consumer financial products and services are fair, transparent, and competitive. As Director, Chopra is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Financial Stability Oversight Council. In 2018, Chopra was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate as a Commissioner on the Federal Trade Commission, where he served until assuming office as CFPB Director. During his tenure at the FTC, he successfully worked to strengthen sanctions against repeat offenders, to reverse the agency’s reliance on no-money, no-fault settlements in fraud cases, and to halt abuses of small businesses. He also led efforts to revitalize dormant authorities, such as those to protect the Made in USA label and to promote competition. The Director previously served at the CFPB from 2010 to 2015. In 2011, the Secretary of the Treasury designated him as the agency’s student loan ombudsman, where he led the Bureau’s efforts on student lending issues. Prior to his government service, Chopra worked at McKinsey and Company, the global management consultancy, where he worked in the financial services, health care, and consumer technology sectors. Chopra holds a BA from Harvard University and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Julia R. Gordon serves as the Assistant Secretary for Housing and Federal Housing Commissioner at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Confirmed by the U.S. Senate on May 12, 2022, Ms. Gordon is responsible for the Federal Housing Administration’s Single Family, Multifamily and Healthcare mortgage insurance programs, HUD’s Multifamily assisted housing portfolio, HUD’s housing counseling program, and HUD’s Manufactured Housing program. Throughout her career, Ms. Gordon has been both a strong advocate for and hands-on practitioner working to achieve equal justice, fairness and equity in housing, and consumer protections. Prior to joining HUD, Ms. Gordon was most recently the President of the National Community Stabilization Trust and has also held leadership roles at the Center for American Progress, the Federal Housing Finance Agency and the Center for Responsible Lending.
Patrick T. Harker took office on July 1, 2015, as the 11th president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. He was reappointed for his second five-year term effective March 1, 2021. In this role, Harker participates on the Federal Open Market Committee, which formulates the nation’s monetary policy. As an engineer by training, Harker has continued to apply his research and receive patents throughout his career. He considers the effect of automation on the labor force as “the perfect intersection” of engineering and economics. Other technological influences, including artificial intelligence and machine learning, are also playing a part in the Third District’s and the nation’s economy. By focusing on economic mobility, one of the Bank’s research priorities, the Bank’s researchers are looking for ways to create sustained, inclusive growth through practical applications. Targeting such research to the employment field can help workers, communities, and industries plan for inevitable disruptions by connecting workers to training programs while encouraging discussions on the skills that are vital to a constantly changing market. Before taking office at the Philadelphia Fed, Harker was the 26th president of the University of Delaware. He was also a professor of business administration at the University’s Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics and a professor of civil and environmental engineering at the College of Engineering. Before joining the University of Delaware in 2007, Harker was dean and Reliance Professor of Management and Private Enterprise at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to being appointed dean in 2000, Harker was the Wharton School’s interim dean and deputy dean as well as the chair of its Operations and Information Management Department. In 1991, he was the youngest faculty member in Wharton’s history to be awarded an endowed professorship as UPS Transportation Professor of the Private Sector. He has published/edited nine books and more than 100 professional articles. From 1996 to 1999, he served as editor-in-chief of the journal Operations Research. In 2012, Harker was named a fellow of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS) and a charter fellow of the National Academy of Inventors. He was also named a White House fellow by President George H. W. Bush in 1991 and was a special assistant to FBI Director William S. Sessions from 1991 to 1992. Harker is a board member of both the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia and its Select Greater Philadelphia Council. He is also a board member at the Science Center in Philadelphia. Previously, he was on the boards of Catholic Relief Services, Pepco Holdings, Inc., and Huntsman Corporation and was a founding member of the board of advisors for Decision Lens, Inc. He was also a nonbanking Class B director of the Philadelphia Fed from 2012 to 2015. Harker has a Ph.D. in civil and urban engineering, an M.A. in economics, and an M.S.E. and B.S.E. in civil engineering, all from the University of Pennsylvania.
Sandra L. Thompson was nominated by President Joseph R. Biden to serve as the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) on December 17, 2021, confirmed by the U.S. Senate on May 25, 2022, and sworn in on June 22, 2022. On June 23, 2021, the White House appointed Thompson as the Acting Director of FHFA. Before being named FHFA Acting Director, Thompson served as Deputy Director of the Division of Housing Mission and Goals (DHMG). Since March 2013, as the DHMG Deputy Director, Thompson oversaw FHFA’s housing and regulatory policy, capital policy, financial analysis, fair lending and all mission activities for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks. Prior to joining FHFA, Thompson worked at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), for more than 23 years in a variety of leadership positions, most recently as Director, Division of Risk Management Supervision. During her time at the FDIC, Thompson led the Agency’s examination and enforcement program for risk management and consumer protection at the height of the financial crisis. She also led the FDIC’s outreach initiatives in response to a crisis of consumer confidence in the banking system. Her experience ranges from supervision to consumer protection, risk management and consumer outreach activities. Thompson is a graduate of Howard University in Washington, D.C.
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