OPENING GENERAL SESSION: A Conversation with Andre Agassi

President & Chief Executive Officer, Mortgage Bankers Association

Robert D. Broeksmit, CMB, is MBA’s President and Chief Executive Officer. He is a senior finance executive and corporate officer with over 30 years of experience in the mortgage sector. He has directed all aspects of lending activities, including marketing, sales, operations, secondary marketing, loan servicing, and default management. He has also served as a mortgage underwriting expert testifying on many large, high-profile cases. Prior to joining MBA, Broeksmit served as President and Chief Operating Officer with Treliant, heading the firm’s mortgage litigation support practice. He previously held senior leadership positions in the mortgage business, including 14 years with Chevy Chase Bank (including after its purchase by Capital One) and 7 years as Vice President at Prudential Home Mortgage. He has overseen annual originations of $9 billion, a balance sheet of $10 billion in residential mortgage, and a servicing portfolio of $20 billion. He is past Chairman of MBA’s Residential Board of Governors and a member of its Board of Directors.

2025 MBA Chair; President, Lennar Mortgage

Laura Escobar is the 2025 MBA Chair 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.

Tennis Champion, Philanthropist, Education Advocate, and Author

After turning pro at the age of 16, tennis prodigy Andre Agassi rose to international fame, earning 60 men’s singles titles, including eight Grand Slam singles championships, over a 20-year career. A former World No. 1 player, Agassi is the first male player ever to win all four Grand Slam titles and an Olympic gold medal. He was also a member of three winning Davis Cup teams. While his tennis career took him all over the world, Agassi always stayed connected to his hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada. In 1994, at the age of 24, he created the Andre Agassi Foundation for Education. Early activities included building a shelter in Las Vegas for abused and neglected children, creating the Andre Agassi Boys and Girls Club, and developing Team Agassi, a tennis program that nurtures professional players and puts college within reach. For over 25 years, the Foundation has honed its mission to focus on transforming public education. In 2001, the Foundation opened the Andre Agassi College Preparatory Academy, a tuition free K -12 public charter school, in historical West Las Vegas. Recognized as a model charter school, Agassi Prep graduated its first senior class in June 2009 with a 100 percent college acceptance rate. After retiring in 2006, Andre Agassi increased his focus on his foundation and on promoting education reform. He is also building a lifestyle business through endorsement relationships, joint venture investments and real estate development. In November 2009, he released his autobiography, Open, which reached #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. In June 2011, as part of an effort to expand his impact on education, Andre partnered with Turner Impact Capital on an innovative new real estate fund – the Turner-Agassi Charter School Facilities Fund – to promote the success and growth of best-in-class charter schools in urban communities across the United States. As of 2024, the fund has opened 122 schools, serving over 100,000 students, in some of the most economically challenged neighborhoods in America. Most recently, Andre launched Square Panda, an award-winning educational technology learning system utilizing phonics with multi-sensory play. He is married to tennis superstar, philanthropist and businesswoman Stefanie Graf.