William B. Greiner, CFA, is the lead portfolio manager of the UMB Scout Growth Fund, a position he has held since the Fund began being managed as a growth fund in 2005. He is a CFA charterholder and has over 19 years of investment management experience. From September 2003 to June 2004 Mr. Greiner managed private accounts, and was the Chief Investment Officer at UMB from 1999 to September 2003. Prior to that, he managed investments at Northern Trust Company in Chicago. BusinessWeek magazine honored Mr. Greiner as the most accurate stock market forecaster of 2005 for his prescient predictions regarding the year-end values of the major U.S. stock indexes. Mr. Greiner received his undergraduate degree from Washburn University.
Kirk Johnson, CFP, is Senior Vice President and Manager of the Investment Management Group of CoreFirst Bank & Trust, Topeka, Kansas. He is a graduate of Kansas State University, holding a Master’s Degree in Business Administration, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance. He also earned his Certifed Financial Planning designation from the College of Financial Planning in Denver, and has more than 25 years experience in the trust field. Currently, he serves as a board member of the Kansas Capital Area Chapter-American Red Cross, Board of Directors of Downtown Topeka Rotary, and is also involved in his church and several community organizations.
Mayo Schmidt is President and Chief Executive Officer, as well as a Director, of Viterra, a leading western Canadian agribusiness recognized by Canadian Business Magazine among the top 50 most important companies in Canada’s history. Since arriving at Viterra in 2000, Mr. Schmidt has spearheaded dramatic changes, including a comprehensive operational and financial restructuring that has restored Viterra’s financial strength and its ability to generate value for shareholders. Before joining Viterra, Mr. Schmidt led the reorganization of ConAgra Global Specialty Crops businesses and held a number of key management positions at General Mills. Mr. Schmidt is a member of the Canadian Council of Chief Executive Officers (open to the top 150 Canadian corporations), the C.D. Howe Institute, a Director on the Conference Board of Canada and a Trustee for The Conference Board, Inc. Mr. Schmidt is also a Director of Prairie Malt Ltd. and the Saskatchewan Roughriders. He earned his Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) from Washburn University in 1980, receiving both athletic and academic scholarships. In 2003 Mr. Schmidt was honored as Washburn’s annual Alumni Fellow. He has two daughters and makes his home in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada.
Cindy Shields, CFA, is Managing Director and Head of Equities for 6th Avenue Investment Management Co. LLC, where she leads a team of portfolio managers, research analysts and traders managing numerous investment vehicles. From 1994-2002 Ms. Shields was a lead portfolio manager for the firm managing Large-Cap Growth, Mid- & Small-Cap Growth, and Socially Aware investment strategies. She joined Security Management Co. LLC in 1989 as a research analyst focused on small- and mid-cap companies. Ms. Shields graduated from Washburn University with a Bachelor of Busines Administration degree, majoring in finance and economics. She has over 17 years of experience in the securities field and has earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation. Ms. Shields was an Alumni Fellow of Washburn University in 1998.
Kent Townsend currently serves as Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of Capitol Federal Savings Bank and Capitol Federal Financial. Mr. Townsend has been with the firm since 1984, where he also directs strategic development and manages a $2.4 billion investment portfolio, and participates on the Bank’s Information Technology and Oversight Committees. Mr. Townsend received his Master of Business Administration degree at Washburn’s School of Business in 1987. He is involved with the Shawnee Heights Public Schools Foundation, serving as President, and the United Way of Greater Topeka, receiving their Volunteer of the Year award in 2006.
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