Rachel Evangelisto
Rachel is from the Húŋkpapȟa Standing Rock Sioux tribe and grew up in Rapid City, SD. Working under the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) as an ICWA Guardian ad litem, Rachel advocates for native youth and cultural preservation in Minnesota. She is committed to keeping Native Youth out of the child protection system and is working on obtaining her Juris Doctorate in Native American law to support this mission further. She is passionate about Indigenous sovereignty rights, racial justice, advocating for the Indian Child Welfare Act, and Indigenous representation. Rachel has delivered speeches, keynote addresses, and presentations to many different organizations about diversity and inclusion. Additionally, Rachel earned the honor of becoming the first Indigenous Miss Minnesota and will be competing for the title of Miss America in December.
Dave Cornell
Dave Cornell is a speaker, coach and trainer who helps individuals and organizations overcome their fears by making courageous choices both personally and professionally so they can lead more productive, passionate and engaged lives. He founded Cultivate Courage, LLC in 2011 to accomplish this mission. He has over 35 years of experience in sales, sales management and training and development.Dave’s business is focused on three areas; Speaking, Coaching and Training. Dave’s powerful presentation, Cultivate Courage, which focuses on fear, courage and change and how those emotions affect individuals and organizations, is well received by audiences and has been a launching pad for performance development and personal improvement. Dave also serves as a Senior Consultant with David Horsager’s Trust Edge Leadership Institute. Dave and his wife, Amy, have been married for 41 years. They immensely enjoy time with their two grown daughters, son-in-law and four grandchildren. He also enjoys golf, basketball, and anything with a comedic bent. Relating to that comedic bent, he is a graduate of Stevie Ray’s School of Improv.
Jan Lehman
Jan Lehman is an international speaker, author, and CEO of CTC Productivity. Her motto is to “Change the Culture” so organizations minimize wasted time, talent, and technology. For over a decade, Jan’s talks have helped thousands to dramatically improve profitability, employee engagement, and job satisfaction.
Using a blend of psychology and technology, Jan’s approach to workplace productivity extends beyond simple hacks or a one size fits all solution. You’ll get an exciting blend of interactive lessons and immediately usable strategies to work smart and do more. The roots of Jan’s business acumen and people-first attitude come from her business degree in Operations and Systems Management with a minor in Psychology from Indiana University Kelley School of Business. Keynote speaking is the perfect forum for her to blend her people skills and productivity expertise.
As a former Fortune 500 technology executive, Jan created and led highly effective teams that streamlined business processes and automated workflows. Today she works with leaders to leverage insights, strategies, and solutions to minimize waste and create a culture of productivity throughout their organizationsAll of Jan Lehman’s in-person talks and virtual experiences are customized to meet the needs of your event and exceed the expectations of your audience. But there is a common theme: Jan helps leaders eliminate waste in their organizations so they can become truly effective in their role.
Tim Eggebraaten
Tim Eggebraaten has been a police officer since 1992 and had many different roles during his career with the Detroit Lakes, MN Police Department – DARE Instructor, Patrol Sergeant, Investigative Sergeant, K-9 Handler, and Chief of Police from 2011 to 2016. Tim retired from the DLPD in November 2016 after 24 ½ years in law enforcement and 3 years as a correctional officer. Tim and his wife, Denise, make their home in Detroit Lakes. Tim began talking about his own career path and leadership journey in 2016 and found that talking with others about personal and emotional topics greatly helped his own healing process and learned that others could benefit from knowing that they are not alone in their own journey. Tim will talk (and sing) with your organization about keeping the harmony in our lives and finding that balance to succeed in all aspects of our lives. Tim has spent many years performing as a one-man band and will use the power of music during his presentation to inspire and move your audience.
Jason Hunt
Jason A Hunt is an engaging keynote speaker, leadership trainer, and author known for helping individuals and organizations unlock the power of people-centric influence. With over two decades of experience across diverse industries — from manufacturing and senior care, to finance and public service — Jason provides practical insights on influence, leadership, and self-development that drive real results.
The president of the National Speakers Association of Minnesota and a Certified Speaking Professional (CSP – a distinction that only 17% of professional speakers worldwide hold), Jason’s dynamic presentations blend humor, actionable strategies, and relatable stories. His signature principles of Care, Connection, Collaboration, and Courage empower leaders at all levels to create strong cultures, communicate effectively, and achieve meaningful outcomes.
Jason’s first major leadership role was to run a branch of 100 church members in outer Siberia when he was only 19. He later took on the position of principal of a large middle school, where he failed miserably. Through the school of hard knocks, he learned that leadership has little to do with title and a lot to do with influence – your ability to get people to think or act differently. He left education to help others understand how to develop influence with people. He is now the founder and CEO of Eye Squared Leadership and he has had the pleasure of influencing over 30,000 people in organizations large and small. Jason has worked with Fortune 500 companies, government organizations, and small businesses, delivering transformative sessions that resonate long after the event concludes.
Jordana Green
Jordana Green is an Emmy award winning television news anchor, a Marconi award winning podcast writer and producer, and drive-time news-talk radio talk show host. Jordana started her career in television news at various stations in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Her career advanced to television news anchorwoman in Indianapolis and the Twin Cities. Jordana migrated from a teleprompter to broadcasting her points of view on a variety of topics as the co-host of the “Paul & Jordana Show” on WCCO Radio in the Twin Cities. She considers learning how to snowboard at age forty as one of her greatest physical accomplishments until being challenged with a rare form of leukemia in 2020. Her straight talk Jersey girl truth telling is funny, transparent, and humble. Her colleagues all agree that when Jordana enters a room, the energy shifts to the positive and everyone knows she’s there… and on ‘their’ side. She has learned many life lessons from her challenges of and rebounding from job loss, moving from city to city, divorce, balancing her career with motherhood, and leukemia. She remarried and is raising three teenagers in her Minneapolis home filled with lunacy, love and laughter. “Finding Your Moments of Clarity”, Jordana’s presentation allows listeners to dig deep into their experiences to identify life changing moments that have molded their past decisions. She offers clear steps to identifying future ‘moments of clarity’ that will generate the confidence everyone needs to make the next right moves. Jordana is inspiring, vulnerable, and funny. She connects deeply with all who hear her and motivates them with specific guidelines to be on their true career, personal and spiritual paths.
Rick Kupchella
I thrive on helping major global brands better understand the accelerating pace of innovation and what is required to thrive in today’s markets.After years as an Emmy award-winning investigative reporter and television news anchor in the Twin Cities with stints in New York and Washington DC. I’m now a serial-entrepreneur in news, content marketing, and strategy businesses – combining investigative journalists, digital strategists and senior business and marketing leaders help businesses drive revenue and influence.Among other topics, I speak on the future of media, news consumption, and the changing landscapes of marketing and innovation. I believe the greatest business results will be achieved by those who figure out how to. Be The Media.Fun Facts- I’m passionate about the environment and humanitarian relief efforts. I serve as a Board Member of The Nature Conservancy, in the Upper Midwest, Former Chairman of the Board for Smile Network International, and Past President of The Minnesota Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.I authored two children’s books, including one with Former Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court, Sandra Day O’Connor, America’s first woman in space, Sally Ride and Olympic superstar Jackie Joyner Kersee.
Vineeta Sawkar
Vineeta Sawkar rarely sits on the couch. Her motto: “Get the ticket. Go to the event. See the friend. Take the trip. No regrets.” She spent most of her career as a television news anchor/reporter before she was let go from the job she loved. After a few days of sulking, she regrouped and embarked on an exciting career journey pioneering a video role at a major market newspaper and then bringing her own unique spin on public relations to a healthcare organization and then a major university. The program director at news/talk station WCCO radio reached out and he asked her to come back to broadcasting and be the host of their three hour morning show. She jumped at the chance and now brings the most important and impactful news stories and interviews to WCCO radio listeners every weekday morning. In the short time she has been a radio host, Minnesota Star Tribune readers voted her Best Radio Personality in 2022, 2023 and 2024.
Through her life, Vineeta has overcome her fear of hearing the word “no.” Apprehension about that word can keep people from realizing success in business and life. At one point in her career, she could have wallpapered a room with rejection letters. Once she overcame being rejected, she took control of her life and has tried to make the most of her opportunities. She has real life examples and suggestions to conquer the fear of hearing “no” and also harnessing the power of that word to reach your goals and dreams.
Wendie Pett
Wendie Pett, is passionate about motivating people to make fitness and good nutrition part of their daily routine. She teaches the balance of mind, body and spirit through her Visibly Fit™ wellness program. Wendie has a nationally syndicated television program that airs every Tuesday on the NRB Network. Her show also airs on Upliftv, WLCN, and IBN Television. She contributes weekly on KTIS radio in the Twin Cities as ‘Coach Wendie’ and is a featured columnist in VEGWORLD Magazine, The Christian View, Best Ever You, Refreshed, Vegan Lifestyle, and Diet.com. Wendie is a full-time business owner, a naturopathic doctor, wife, mother, author, speaker, TV host, advisory board member for Christian Women in Media and part-time volunteer. Her business consists of whole-food/plant-based wellness coaching, emotional healing, personal online training, fitness planning, educational and motivational speaking, and creating new products/tools to assist clients along their wellness journey. After a major injury to her shoulder, she resorted to body weight resistance exercises for strength and healing and hasn’t turned back to any other form of training since. She has helped countless others reach their fitness and health goals without ever compromising their joints, tendons, or ligaments – teaching that Your Body Is Your Gym™ and instilling new diet habits that have shown to reverse multiple diseases and allow people to get off medications.
Jesse Ross
Jesse Ross is the CEO of Mr. Jesse Ross, a leadership development consulting company that focuses on enhancing communication and connection while addressing conflict management, culture, people development, and productivity in an intentional way. He is also the CEO of Intentional Drip, an e-commerce coffee company that aims to create more awareness in the world through relationship building and conversations. Jesse is husband to one amazing wife and father to five beautiful children (six if you include his nephew). He loves playing basketball, eating chocolate chip cookies, and connecting with people from all walks of life. Jesse has a passion for making an impact in the world and he believes that North Minneapolis is one of the most overlooked areas on the planet.