At its May meeting, NCBA CLUSA’s Board of Directors elected a new lineup of officers to guide the association. Our Board of Directors sets the strategic direction for the organization, ensuring that NCBA CLUSA remains a dynamic, influential voice in the cooperative space. We look forward to benefiting from the insight and ideas of our new executive team!
Jeffrey Connor
Chair (2025-2027)
Jeffrey Connor serves as chief operating officer at the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). With a background in public policy, communication, politics and coalition building, he brings 14 years of experience on Capitol Hill to NRECA.
In Congress, Jeffrey served as communications director and chief of staff to U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO) from 2003 to 2013, when he joined NRECA. Previously, he worked as communications director for U.S. Rep. Lee Terry (R-NE).
Jeffrey was also an associate staff member of the House Appropriations Committee, where he guided the work of the Subcommittee on Financial Services for Chairwoman Emerson following the 2008 U.S. financial crisis. He also helped expand the reach of several nonpartisan policy caucuses in the U.S. House of Representatives.
He is a native Nebraskan and a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis. Jeffrey resides in Northern Virginia with his wife, Emily, and their two children.
Christina Jennings
1st Vice Chair (2025-2026)
Christina Jennings is the Executive Director of Shared Capital Cooperative, a national Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) dedicated to financing the growth and development of cooperatives across the United States. Headquartered in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota, Shared Capital is a $25 million loan fund with a 45-year track record of investing in worker, food and housing cooperatives. As a cooperative association itself, Shared Capital is owned and governed by 330 cooperatives across more than 40 states, creating a unique model where borrowers are also investors and decision-makers.
With more than 25 years of experience in community development finance in the U.S. and microfinance internationally, Christina has dedicated her career to advancing economic justice and expanding equitable access to capital. Since joining Shared Capital in 2008, she has provided strategic leadership, overseen lending operations and has led capitalization efforts. Under her leadership, the fund has tripled in size, undergone a successful national expansion and rebranding, and introduced innovative lending and investment strategies to better serve cooperatives.
Before joining Shared Capital, Christina worked with CDFIs managing a citywide micro-loan fund, developing business training programs, and providing technical assistance to small businesses and nonprofits. Her background includes founding and managing small businesses and social enterprises, giving her a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities faced by mission-driven organizations. Christina holds a master’s degree in Community Economic Development and Nonprofit Management from the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs and a bachelor’s degree in Gender and Development from Hampshire College.
Jill Tomalin
2nd Vice Chair (2025-2026)
Jill Tomalin is Executive Vice President and Chief of Staff at America’s Credit Unions. Tomalin has more than 30 years of experience within the credit union industry, including two decades of expertise leading high-performing teams. Tomalin oversees Membership & Engagement, Communications & Marketing, Operations & Finance, and Association Services. She most recently served as Chief Operating Officer at the Credit Union National Association (now America’s Credit Unions).
Tomalin joined CUNA in 2000 as director of educational resources in the Center for Professional Development. She was promoted to vice president of that department in 2002 and later promoted to senior vice president of Association Services in 2003. Tomalin was promoted to executive vice president and chief operating officer in 2013. Prior to joining CUNA, Tomalin served in management roles for the Credit Union Executives Society and the Texas Credit Union League. She earned an MBA and a BA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Brian Cavey
Treasurer (2025-2026)
As senior vice president of government affairs, Brian Cavey represents CoBank before Congress, the administration and regulatory agencies and is based in Washington, DC.
Prior to joining CoBank, Mr. Cavey served as the vice president of legislative affairs for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). Before joining NRECA in 2009, Mr. Cavey worked as a lobbyist with the Stanton Park Group representing a diverse group of clients. Mr. Cavey is an accomplished legislative operative with over 20 years of experience on Capitol Hill, in the state capitols, in corporate government affairs and trade association management. Before going into politics, Mr. Cavey was an educator, serving as an assistant to the dean of the Montana State University College of Agriculture, where he was liaison between students and university academic committees.
Mr. Cavey holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in agriculture education from Montana State University.
Rosemary Mahoney
Secretary (2025-2026)
Rosemary Mahoney’s 30-year career as a co-op developer began with a post-college job at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Agriculture Cooperative Service. One of her most successful projects at USDA was CROPP, which later became Organic Valley, a 2,000 member co-op in LeFarge, Wisconsin.
Mahoney has been developing co-ops ever since. She has worked with more than 25 start-up cooperative enterprises around the world, including 15 successful cooperative consulting projects in Africa. She led a technology company, CoMetrics, that introduced the idea of using data as a strategic tool to improve performance and impact for cooperatives and helped create a new rural cooperative development center at USDA.
Mahoney continues to serve as a senior advisor at CoMetrics and has served on or is serving on more than 13 boards, including The Cooperative Foundation, NCBA CLUSA, Capital Impact Partners, National Cooperative Bank, dotCoop and CooperationWorks! In 2018, she was inducted to the Cooperative Hall of Fame.