MBA Education Honors Karley Bond with Willis Bryant Award

PHILADELPHIA (October 18, 2023) – MBA Education, the award-winning education division of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), honored Regions Mortgage’s Karley Bond, CMB, AMP, with its 2023 Willis Bryant Award here during the 2023 MBA Annual Convention and Expo. The Willis Bryant Award recognizes outstanding academic achievement in the three courses of MBA Education's School of Mortgage Banking (SOMB) and is awarded annually to a top student graduate of SOMB III. To qualify, a student must achieve a grade of "excellent" on all SOMB exams and demonstrate exceptional leadership qualities in both the classroom and when interacting with other students.

“MBA Education is thrilled to recognize Karley Bond as the recipient of this year’s Willis Bryant Award. We applaud and are amazed at the success Karley has had in recruiting more young professionals into our industry,” said David Upbin, MBA’s Vice President of Education Operations and Programming and MBA Strategy. “Her exceptional performance throughout the three SOMB classes, commitment to higher education, and career achievements embody the spirit of the Willis Bryant Award.”

Bond joined Regions Mortgage in 2007, where she currently serves as Senior Vice President, Area Manager. She is responsible for leading all mortgage sales teams in West Tennessee. Prior to joining Regions Mortgage, Bonds gained years of experience in the real estate finance industry during her time as a financial consultant, a licensed real estate agent, and mortgage loan officer. Bond has also played a critical role in the success of the Tennessee Mortgage Bankers Association, where she served as 2020-2021 President and now acts as the Education Co-Director. She also sits on both the MBA Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee and the MBA Future Leaders Committee.

This award was named after Willis R. Bryant, following his death in 1965. Bryant, a mortgage banking pioneer of the 1950s, was a former lecturer for SOMB who authored Mortgage Lending Fundamentals and Practices, a former SOMB textbook.