Cedar Valley SWE Executive Board FY25
President – Kari (Zache) Kristensen
Kari (Zache) Kristensen is the TPM Coordinator for John Deere’s Drivetrain Components Operations and is responsible for driving the overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) initiative for Drivetrain. Kari earned her B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Bradley University and joined John Deere’s Engineering Development Program following graduation. In her 15 years following the EDP program at John Deere, Kari held multiple manufacturing engineering positions at Tractor Cab Assembly Operations as well as Drivetrain Operations, before moving on to her current role. Kari was the founding president for CV SWE and worked relentlessly to establish a local section of SWE which was chartered in the spring of 2010. Since founding CV SWE, Kari went on to earn her Masters in Engineering Management from Penn State. She and her husband live south of Waterloo and are raising their four year old daughter on their private horse farm. Kari is a proud member of Pinto Horse Association and has spent the last seven years showing her horses across the country. When they aren’t working or “horsing around,” the family enjoys farming in Wisconsin on the Zache family farm or visiting family in Denmark. The SWE section at Bradley University was much like a “village” for Kari, and she wishes to provide the same opportunities for others. She is excited for the possibility of becoming more involved with SWE again.
Vice President – Nancy Arend
Nancy Arend is a Product Verification & Validation Engineer for John Deere at the Product Engineering Center. In this role, she is responsible for testing drivetrain components for upcoming models for large tractor. Nancy joined John Deere in 2019 where she began her career as an EDP (Engineering Development Program), pursuing rotations in manufacturing and mechanical development. Prior to joining John Deere, Nancy completed two co-ops as a Production Engineer with Toyota at their manufacturing plant in San Antonio, Texas. She holds a B.S. and M.S. both in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. She has been a member of SWE and Cedar Valley SWE since 2019 where she actively volunteers with the SWENext program. Outside of work, Nancy enjoys volunteering with the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), traveling (often back home to Texas) and helping out her husband (Ryan) on the farm.
Treasurer – Susan Evans
Susan Evans is an EDP Engineer for John Deere Waterloo Works, and has been with Deere since 2023. She is currently a manufacturing engineer at the Foundry supporting multiple departments with projects in layouts, work instruction, and delay review. Her first rotation was in Drivetrain Components as a Machining Engineer. Susan holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University. She was first introduced to SWE through the Purdue chapter, where she was a member for 5 years. Susan is excited to be a part of upcoming Cedar Valley SWE events and outreach in the area! Outside of work she enjoys long distance running, community theatre, and gardening.
Secretary – Angie Edgington
Angie Edgington retired in 2024 after a nearly 30 year career including multiple roles at Ford, John Deere and SAS. Her career passion was improving quality to reduce cost and improve the customer experience. Her retirement passion is financial planning and helping others achieve their goals. Angie lives in Cedar Falls, Iowa with her husband and has two children. Angie earned a systems engineering graduate certificate from MIT, an MBA and MS in Industrial Engineering from the University of Michigan – Dearborn and a BS in Industrial Engineering from Iowa State. She is passionate about giving back and volunteers with many organizations including Society of Women Engineers (SWE), FIRST (For Inspiration & Recognition of Science & Technology) robotics, Make a Wish and House of Hope.
