Campus Connection

Citizens State Bank First Friday Lecture Series continues

Two UWL College of Business Administration alumni will be featured during the college’s lecture series during the spring semester. The Citizens State Bank First Friday Lecture Series provides scholarly dialogue about business management and leadership directly from today’s business leaders. The presentations are free and open to all.

The spring presentations include:

Friday, March 2 Michael Pellegrino, president and chief growth officer at Sargento Foods Inc. 3:30 p.m. Skogen Auditorium, 1400 Centennial Hall, 308 N. 16th St. Free admission Appointed to his current role in 2016, Michael Pellegrino oversees Sargento business units, strategic planning and the growth agenda. He previously led the Consumer Products Division’s efforts as division president from 2009-16. During that time, his team accelerated growth of the brand and built on the company’s legacy of successful innovations in retail cheese. In 2013, Pellegrino added chief customer officer duties, with responsibilities for the ongoing performance of the food service and ingredient division. Previously, Pellegrino spent 20 years with Kraft Foods Inc., holding a variety of marketing, strategy and general manager roles with the cereals, cheese and pizza divisions. Pellegrino was included on the “Forty Under 40” list in Crain’s Chicago Business magazine in 2002. He received two degrees from UWL: a Bachelor of Science in marketing in 1988 and an MBA in 1989. Pellegrino is a board member for Richelieu Foods Inc. and the Sheboygan County Food Bank. He assists with fundraising efforts for United Way and Lakeland University, and coaches youth basketball. He lives in Kohler with his wife, Maryellen, and their four children. Friday, April 6 Amy Kerwin, vice president of community investments at Great Lakes Higher Education Guaranty Corp. 3:30 p.m. Skogen Auditorium, 1400 Centennial Hall, 308 N. 16th St. Free admission Amy Kerwin manages Great Lakes’ philanthropic strategy to help more students from low-income families, students of color, and first-generation students earn postsecondary degrees. Kerwin oversees an annual grant-making budget in excess of $40 million. She also leads Great Lakes’ corporate giving program that engages and connects more than 2,000 employees with their local community. She started her career at Great Lakes by creating the internal audit function. Prior to joining Great Lakes in 1994, Kerwin spent four years as an auditor at EY. She is both a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Internal Auditor. Kerwin received a bachelor’s degree in accountancy, summa cum laude, from UWL in 1990.