MBA Annual General Session Profile: mPower Event with Geena Davis and Nina Tassler
Hear from two trailblazing leaders, Geena Davis and Nina Tassler, at MBA Annual on Oct. 17 from 8:30-10:00 AM. Click here for more information.
One of Hollywood’s most respected actors, Geena Davis also runs an organization whose work improves gender parity in media. She recently published a memoir, “Dying of Politeness.” Her college roommate, Nina Tassler is an entertainment executive, producer, and activist. During her tenure as Chairman at CBS Entertainment, she led it to become America’s #1 Network for 12 years. She also assembled a senior staff that was 50% female and developed many hit series with strong women characters. Her book, “What I Told My Daughter,” is a collection of inspiring reflections from notable women in politics, sports, art and business. Hear their empowering stories in this interview with mPower Founder, Marcia Davies. Sponsored by FICO. Please RSVP here.
Speakers
Marcia M. Davies, mPower Founder and Chief Operating Officer, Mortgage Bankers Association
Marcia Davies is Chief Operating Officer for MBA, ensuring cross-organizational alignment and facilitating the implementation of strategic initiatives, as well as maintaining oversight of key organizational priorities. She provides leadership, guidance and overall management to the Public Affairs, Marketing, Conferences, Membership, Education, Information Technology and Office Services divisions. She also provides management oversight to and is a Board member of MBA’s Opens Doors Foundation. Previously, Davies worked at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), as Senior Advisor to the Assistant Secretary for Housing and Federal Housing Commissioner and in various roles at Freddie Mac for 21 years. She is the founder of mPower — MBA Promoting Opportunities for Women to Extend their Reach — MBA’s networking platform for women in the real estate finance industry. She is a member of the NAWRB Diversity and Inclusion Leadership Council (NDILC), Women in Housing Finance and the International Women’s Leadership Association, and was honored by HousingWire as one of its 2015 Women of Influence.
Debra W. Still, CMB, 2013 MBA Chairman; Vice Chairman, Pulte Mortgage LLC
Debra W. Still, CMB, is Vice Chair of Pulte Financial Services, which includes Pulte Mortgage LLC, PGP Title and Pulte Insurance Agency and employs over 1100 individuals throughout the U.S. Pulte Financial Services is a part of PulteGroup, America’s largest homebuilder with operations in twenty-five states and the District of Columbia. Still has more than four decades of experience in the mortgage industry. She joined Pulte Mortgage in 1983, as Vice President/Branch Manager of the Maryland Division and subsequently held that position with the Dallas/Fort Worth Division. In June 1997, she was promoted to Executive Vice President, Production, and in October of that year was appointed to the Pulte Mortgage Board of Directors and named Corporate Secretary. Still became Chief Operating Officer in 1999, and in August 2004, was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer. She was named President and Chief Executive Officer of Pulte Financial Services in 2010 overseeing Pulte Mortgage, PGP Title and PIA Insurance. Still served as the 2013 Chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association and is currently a member of the association’s Board of Directors and a member of MBA’s Consumer Affairs Advisory Council. Still was awarded MBA’s Andrew D. Woodward Distinguished Service Award in 2014. As an active MBA member for more than a decade, Still has also served as Chair of MBA’s Residential Board of Governors (RESBOG,) Chairman of MBA’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee, Chairman of the Council for Residential Mortgage Servicing for the 21st Century, Chair of the Affordable Housing Subgroup on GSE Reform, and was Chair of the MBA Forward Task Force. She has also served on MBA’s Strategic Planning Committee, MBA’s Loan Origination Task Force, and Secondary and Capital Markets Committee. Still has testified before Congress multiple times. Still is presently the Chairman of MBA’s Opens Doors Foundation. In 2011 and 2013, Still was featured in “Influential Women of the Housing Economy” by HousingWire Magazine and in 2011 was named one of “The Top Ten Women in Mortgage and Housing” by The Five Star Institute. In 2020, Still was recognized by the Denver Business Journal as “Most Admired CEO of 2020.” In March 2018 Still was appointed to Chimera’s Board of Directors. Chimera Investment Corporation is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that is primarily engaged in real estate finance. In September 2021, Still was appointed to the Board of Directors of Enact, Holdings, Inc, Enact is a publicly traded company and a leading U.S. private mortgage insurance provider. Still is a graduate of Ithaca College, Ithaca, N.Y., with a Bachelor of Science degree and has completed graduate work in Finance at George Washington University, Washington, D.C.
Interviewers
Nina Tassler, Advisor and Former Chairman, CBS Entertainment; Managing Partner, PatMa Productions
Nina Tassler is an entertainment executive, producer, and activist. She was named Chairman of CBS Entertainment in February 2014 after serving as its President since 2004. She led CBS Entertainment to great heights, propelling it to be named America’s #1 Network during 12 of the 13 years of her tenure. She developed such hit series as “The Big Bang Theory,” “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” the “NCIS” franchise, “The Good Wife,” “How I Met Your Mother,” and “Mom.” Tassler also assembled a senior staff that was 50% female and helped establish CBS Entertainment’s first Diversity, Inclusion, and Communications department. She has received the Award for Creative Achievement by The Imagen Foundation, The Lucy Award for Excellence in Television by Women in Film, The Career Achievement Award by the Casting Society of America. In 2016, Simon & Schuster published her book, What I Told My Daughter, a collection of inspiring reflections from notable, highly accomplished women in politics, academia, athletics, the arts, and business.
Featured Speakers
Geena Davis, Academy Award-Winning Actor; Founder & Chair, Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media
Academy Award winner Geena Davis is one of Hollywood’s most respected actors, appearing in several roles that became cultural landmarks. Davis received her first Academy Award, for Best Supporting Actress, for her role as the offbeat dog trainer Muriel Pritchett in Lawrence Kasdan’s The Accidental Tourist. She was again nominated for an Academy Award and Golden Globe for her performance in Ridley Scott’s Thelma & Louise, in which she co-starred with Susan Sarandon. In 2019 Davis was honored with a second Oscar, this time the Academy’s Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, in recognition of the work Davis has done over the decades to achieve gender parity onscreen in film and television. Earning the 2006 Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama, Davis broke ground in her portrayal of the first female President of the United States in ABC’s hit show Commander in Chief. Davis made her feature film debut starring opposite Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie. She went on to star in such films as The Fly, Beetlejuice, The Long Kiss Goodnight, Stuart Little, and A League of Their Own. Few have achieved such remarkable success in as many different fields as Davis has: she is not only an Oscar and Golden Globe-winning actor, but a world-class athlete (at one time the nation’s 13th-ranked archer), a member of the genius society Mensa, and the author of a new memoir, “Dying of Politeness,” published by HarperOne. She is recognized for her tireless advocacy of women and girls nearly as much as for her acting accomplishments. She is the Founder and Chair of the non-profit Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, which engages film and television creators to dramatically increase the percentage of female characters — and reduce gender stereotyping — in media made for children 11 and under. Davis is an Executive Producer on the Gracie Award winning feature film This Changes Everything and Emmy nominated, People’s Choice and Gracie Award winning television show Mission Unstoppable on CBS. Davis holds honorary degrees from Boston University, Bates College and New England College.
