Three New Members Added to the DMACC Foundation Board

Ashley Arellano, Travis Lautner and Chris Vernon Will Serve on the DMACC Foundation

• The trio are part of a 27-member team of volunteers serving on the DMACC Foundation Board
  
  
• The Wellmark Inc. Director, DMACC Agribusiness Co-Chair/Instructor and Vernon Company Chairman/CEO will each serve three-year terms, which can be renewed
  
  
• One of the primary roles of the DMACC Foundation is to help raise scholarship funds to support the academic success of DMACC students

Three new members have been added to the DMACC Foundation Board of Directors. Ashley Arellano, Director of Financial Reporting & Investment Operations at Wellmark, Inc.; Travis Lautner, DMACC Agribusiness Co-Chair and Instructor; and Chris Vernon, Chairman/CEO of the Vernon Company have been added to the 27-member team of volunteers serving on the DMACC Foundation Board.

The new members will each serve three-year terms, which can be renewed.

"We are thrilled to welcome Ashley, Travis and Chris to the DMACC Foundation Board of Directors," said Tara Connolly, Executive Director of the DMACC Foundation.

"Their diverse expertise and passion for providing access to DMACC's high quality education and training will make them valuable additions to our team. I am confident that their insights and commitment will greatly contribute to the Foundation's success."

One of the primary roles of the DMACC Foundation is to raise scholarship funds to support the academic success of DMACC students. The Foundation, which awards more than $2 million in annual scholarship support, works collaboratively with individual donors, local businesses and support organizations to ensure funding is available for student scholarships as well as for faculty and program enhancements.

Ashley Arellano leads the financial reporting, investment operations and cost accounting teams at Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield. Arellano's team ensures accurate financial results for both internal and external purposes. She is also involved with financial reporting and investment management for The Wellmark Foundation, Wellmark's affiliated nonprofit organization. Before joining Wellmark eight years ago, Arellano was a senior audit manager at KPMG LLP in Des Moines, where she audited public and private organizations of various sizes. Currently, she serves as the president of the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Society of Iowa, having previously held the positions of vice president and treasurer.

Arellano earned her Bachelor of Science degree in accounting and finance from Iowa State University in 2006.

Travis Lautner has been an Instructor of DMACC's Agribusiness program since 2012 and the Co-Chair since 2022. Prior to that, he was the Farm Coordinator of the DMACC Dallas County Farm where he oversaw the production of crops, cattle, swine and agronomy operations near Adel, IA. He has work experience in equipment sales, direct marketing of livestock, the commodity marketing of grains and livestock exhibition judging. Lautner has served as a Dallas County Cattlemen Board member and a participant in the Governor's Charity Steer Show at the Iowa State Fairgrounds where he helped DMACC President Rob Denson show the 2015 Grand Champion Market Steer and the 2015 Highest Grossing Charity Steer. Lautner has led the fundraising of more than $180,000 in donations to the Ronald McDonald Houses of Iowa and was the driving force behind the Dallas County Farm/Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) wetland project.

Lautner earned an Associate of Applied Science degree in Beef Production Management from Kirkwood Community College and went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture Studies and Animal Science from Iowa State University. He also holds a Beef Artificial Insemination certificate from America Breeders Service (ABS) Global Inc., a Beef Quality Assurance certificate from the Iowa Cattlemen and a Pork Quality Assurance certificate from Iowa Pork.

Chris Vernon has been the Chairman/CEO of the Vernon Company in Newton for more than 37 years. He is skilled in marketing planning, advertising, integrated marketing, sales and sales management. Under Vernon's leadership, the Vernon Company has been recognized for five consecutive years as a "Best Place to Work" by the Advertising Specialty Institute and consistently earned a AAAA1 credit rating, the highest available, for the past 40 years from Dun & Bradstreet. The Vernon Company is engaged in proactive supply chain product safety, environmental sustainability and socially responsible initiatives. The Company also contributes more than five percent of annual profits to dozens of not-for-profit organizations.

Vernon earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics and Political Science from Northwestern University in 1983, an MBA in Marketing and Management Strategy from the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management in 1989. He has also received an MAS/CAS in Brand Management, Strategic Leadership, Marketing and Advertising from the Promotional Products Association International American Trade Association.

For more information about the DMACC Foundation, visit dmacc.edu/foundation.

For more information, contact: Tara Connolly (515) 964-6447

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