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SLIDE PRESENTATION
Marquette Women in Leadership: Career insights and lessons
RECORDED ON TUESDAY, APRIL 26
Presenters:
- Mary Ellen Stanek, Arts ’78, President, Baird Funds, Marquette Trustee Emerita
- Peggy Troy, Nurs ’74, President and CEO, Children’s Wisconsin, Marquette Trustee
Moderator: Andrea Schneider, Director of the Institute of Women’s Leadership, Marquette University
Join us for a conversation about leadership with two Marquette alumnae who have made their marks on the health care and finance industries. Hear their perspectives on how Marquette values informed their professional journeys, their favorite insights from the C-suite, and what lessons they would share with other professionals and women on the career path.
More about this session
Mary Ellen Stanek, CFA, has more than 40 years of investment management experience. She currently serves as Managing Director of Robert W. Baird & Co. and Co-Chief Investment Officer of Baird Advisors responsible for over $125 billion in assets under management. Additionally, she serves as President of the Baird Funds. Previously she had served as President and CEO of Firstar Investment Research & Management Company.
In 2019, 2020, and 2021 Mary Ellen was a finalist for Morningstar’s Outstanding Portfolio Manager Award. Under her leadership, the Baird Advisors team was also named a finalist for the Morningstar, Inc.’s 2016 Fixed Income Fund Manager of the Year Award and has also been recognized multiple times as a “Best Place to Work in Money Management” by Pensions & Investments. In 2020 and 2021 she was named to Barron’s list of the 100 Most Influential Women in U.S. Finance.
Mary Ellen is a member of The CFA Institute, the CFA Society of Milwaukee, the Greater Milwaukee Committee (past Board Chair), Milwaukee 7 (past Co-Chair), Tempo (past President), Professional Dimensions and Milwaukee Women inc.
Mary Ellen serves on the boards of Baird Financial Group, Northwestern Mutual, and WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC). She also serves on the boards of All-In Milwaukee, Boys and Girls Clubs (past Board Chair), Children's Hospital Foundation, Faith In Our Future Trust, Froedtert Health, Greater Milwaukee Committee (past Chair), Greater Milwaukee Foundation, Medical College of Wisconsin (past Board Chair), and Milwaukee World Festival. She served on the Board of Marquette University where she chaired the Board and was elected Trustee Emerita. She has co-chaired numerous Capital Campaigns and is currently co-chairing with her husband Scott, Marquette’s $750 million campaign. She has co-chaired annual campaigns for the United Performing Arts Fund and the United Way.
Mary Ellen has received the Marquette University Alumna of the Year (2010) recognition, the Marquette University College of Arts and Sciences Person for Others Award, Marquette University High School’s Spirit of St. Ignatius Award, The St. Francis Children's Service Award, The Tempo Mentor Award, The Business Journal Women of Influence Award, The Point of Light Award, Professional Dimensions Sacagawea Award, Wisconsin Business Hall of Fame Distinguished Executive Award, Baird’s Brenton H. Rupple Citizenship Award and the Herb Kohl Champion Award. She and her husband were named “Parents of the Year” by COA Youth and Family Centers (2011). In 2012, she received the MVP Award from Boys & Girls Clubs. In 2021, she received United Way’s Linda T. Mellowes Woman Leader of the Year Award.
She received her undergraduate degree from Marquette University (Magna Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa) and her graduate degree from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. She is a Chartered Financial Analyst.
Mary Ellen and her husband, Scott, have three children: Peter (Erin), Katie (Tim), and Patrick (Katie) and four grandchildren: Emme, Abigail, Kathryn and Henry.
Peggy Troy is the first female President and CEO of Children’s Wisconsin, the only health system in Wisconsin that is 100 percent dedicated to kids. Under her leadership, the hospital is ranked among the best in the nation by US News & World Report, employs more than 5,000 people throughout the state, and is served by nearly 700 of Wisconsin’s top pediatric providers from the Medical College of Wisconsin.
In her role, Peggy keeps an eye on the horizon, always anticipating and preparing for changes in the dynamic and complex health care landscape. As the visionary leader of a billion-dollar pediatric health system, she is committed to collaborating with individuals and organizations that have the best interest of kids in mind. As a tireless champion and advocate, she is known to roll up her sleeves, offer guidance on tough issues and bring attention to worthwhile causes. She leads by example and is deeply committed to developing talent at all levels, and to mentoring the next generation of leaders.
Peggy earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Marquette University and a master’s in Nursing from DePaul University in Chicago. While still attending Marquette, Peggy served as a nurse intern at Milwaukee Children’s Hospital (now Children’s Wisconsin) and has been involved in pediatric medicine ever since. Peggy’s talents and passion for children’s health led to progressive leadership roles in both adult and pediatric health systems prior to coming to Children’s in 2009. She is the former chair of the board of the Children’s Hospital Association, a national organization of 220 children’s hospitals that advances child health through innovation in quality, cost and delivery of care. She is frequently invited to speak about pediatric health care policy.
She has been honored with a wide variety of awards including the 2019 Distinguished Service Award from the Wisconsin Hospital Association, 2018 CEO of the Year by BizTimes, and the 2017 Sacagawea Award from Professional Dimensions.
Peggy is a strong community advocate and volunteers her time to organizations that improve overall health and quality of life. She is a member of the Greater Milwaukee Committee and serves on the boards of Zurn Water Solutions Corporation, Marquette University, the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, QuadMed, Teach for America and the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center.
Andrea Schneider joined the faculty of Marquette University Law School in 1996. She teaches ADR, Negotiation, Ethics, and International Conflict Resolution. She is the inaugural director of the Institute for Women’s Leadership and also serves as the Director of the nationally ranked ADR program at Marquette University Law School. Schneider is the author or co-author of numerous books and book chapters in the field of dispute resolution. Her most recently published works include Discussions in Dispute Resolution: The Foundational Articles edited with Art Hinshaw and Sarah Cole; Negotiating Crime: Plea Bargaining, Problem Solving and Dispute Resolution in the Criminal Context with Cynthia Alkon; and Negotiation Essentials for Lawyers and The Negotiator’s Desk Reference both co-edited with Chris Honeyman. Schneider received her A.B. cum laude from the Woodrow Wilson School of International Affairs and Public Policy at Princeton University and her J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School.