Leadership

Our vision comes from our leadership.

The commitment to help our customers achieve their financial goals starts with our executive team and permeates throughout the entire NASB organization.

Tom Wagers

Chief Executive Officer

Tom was elected to serve as NASB’s CEO in 2022. As CEO, Tom works with the executive and senior leadership team to deliver award-winning mortgage and banking products and exceptional service for NASB customers.

Prior to joining NASB in 2013, Tom served as interim president and chief executive officer of Atlantic Coast Bank in Jacksonville, Florida while serving as chief financial officer for nine years.

Tom began his career at Barnett Bank as regional audit manager and worked in a variety of roles before eventually being appointed director of accounting operations.

In addition to his official duties, Tom is a passionate supporter and executive sponsor of NASB’s Kansas City Corporate Challenge involvement.

Tom earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from East Tennessee State University and is a certified public accountant. 

Dena Sanders

Executive Vice President, Retail Banking

Dena oversees all aspects of Retail Banking, Deposit Operations and Retail Funding. She is responsible for the strategic direction, operational and financial goals of NASB’s retail banking network that includes 11 branches within the greater Kansas City metropolitan area.

Dena and her leadership team work to create exceptional customer experiences and competitive banking products that align with customers’ evolving financial needs and goals.

Dena is a graduate of the ABA Stonier Graduate School of Banking and holds a master’s degree in architectural management from Kansas University as well as a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Missouri, Columbia. She is a certified financial marketing professional (CFMP) and a member of the ABA Bank Marketing School advisory board.

Enrique Venegas

Executive Vice President, Chief Lending Officer

Enrique joined NASB in 2013 and oversees all aspects of NASB’s portfolio credit risk management, loan servicing operations, and NASB’s commercial real estate and construction & development lending divisions. Enrique is responsible for the strategic direction, operational, and credit risk effectiveness of NASB’s portfolio lending. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Graduate School of Banking Management and holds a finance and economics degree from Missouri Southern State University.

Enrique was born and raised in Santiago, Chile and moved to the United States at the age of 20 to attend college. What started as a part-time teller job at a community bank became a long-term career and genuine passion for banking and leadership by helping customers and colleagues achieve their goals and aspirations.  

Rhonda Nyhus

Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer

Rhonda oversees NASB’s financial planning and actions that ensure NASB’s ability to serve its customers through continued financial success.

Rhonda joined NASB in 1995 as manager of internal audit before being promoted to vice president and controller in 1997. She has served as chief financial officer since 2002.

Prior to NASB, Rhonda held various roles in the audit department of Grant Thornton LLP. She earned bachelor’s degrees in accounting and management from MidAmerica Nazarene University.

Paul Hubbard

Executive Vice President, Chief Risk Officer

Paul oversees the facilitation and coordination of enterprise risk management strategies for the NASB. He works with NASB’s Board Risk Committee and senior management to assess, monitor, mitigate, and respond to internal and external risks to the bank. In addition, he works closely with the Chief Information Security Officer to maintain sound bank privacy, information, and business continuity plans.

Paul joined NASB in 2015 as VP, Chief Compliance Officer before being promoted to SVP, Chief Risk Officer in 2022. Prior to NASB, Paul held leadership roles at H&R Block, H&R Block Bank, The Revere Group, and Ernst & Young. He uses his 34 years of financial experience to work with business partners to strengthen and promote NASB’s strong compliance and risk awareness culture.

Paul earned an MBA in economics from Northwest Missouri State University.

Andy Dextraze

Executive Vice President, Chief Information Officer

Andy was chosen to serve as NASB’s Chief Information Officer in 2022 and leads the growth and development of NASB’s information technology platforms, systems, and infrastructure.

Andy joined NASB in 2020 after five years with Veracity Consulting where he helped clients transition legacy systems to Platform as a service (PaaS). Prior to that, he served in leadership positions for H&R Block, United Health Group, and Net Sales.

Andy brings over 30 of experience in the engineering and IT fields and will use this knowledge to elevate our customers’ experiences by keeping NASB on the leading edge of financial technology.

Fred Azar

Executive Vice President, Chief Treasury Officer

Fred joined NASB in 2023 as Chief Administrative Officer, overseeing the organization's accounting, finance, investing, risk, and information technology areas.

Before NASB, Fred worked at Northern Trust in Chicago for over 18 years, managing investments for businesses such as pension funds, Insurance companies, and foundations. He also worked at the Bank of Montreal/Harris Bank in their securities lending division, holding various roles, including senior trader.

Fred has a bachelor’s degree in accounting and an MBA with a concentration in finance from the University of Kansas. 

Eric Rice

Executive Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer

Eric joined NASB in 2023 as the Chief Human Resources Officer. He is committed to attracting top talent, developing and promoting employee well-being, and creating an inclusive workplace where everyone feels valued and respected.

Eric has over 27 years of progressive HR experience in leadership consulting, talent management and development, strategic business partnerships, talent acquisition, performance management, and HR administration.  Before NASB, he held leadership roles at The University of Kansas Health System, Saint Luke’s Health System, United Health Group, Ingersoll Rand, and H&R Block.

Eric has a BS from Kansas State University, an MA from Ottawa University, and an MBA from the University of Kansas.

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