Strong showing from Western Michigan University in Crain’s Newsmakers of 2025—including top honors
KALAMAZOO, Mich.—From transforming higher education opportunities through Experience-Driven Learning to driving investment and economic impact to developing a state-of-the art athletic performance and event center, Broncos are making bold moves—and they’re generating buzz across the region.
Crain’s Grand Rapids Business recognized Western Michigan University’s impact in its 2025 Newsmakers of the Year awards, naming Dr. Doug Lepisto and Dr. Derrick McIver, associate professors of management, overall Newsmakers of the Year for their leadership of place-based investment firm Sleeping Giant Capital. The pair took the top honor among 48 finalists in 16 industry categories and won their category as Newsmakers of the Year in banking and finance.
“It’s a really great recognition of all the hard work, the entrepreneurial leap by the CEOs we work with, our investors,” says Lepisto, who, alongside business partner McIver, also serves as co-director of the University’s Center for Principled Leadership and Business Strategy. “We’re excited to keep the momentum up in 2026.”
WMU President Russ Kavalhuna was named Newsmaker of the Year in the education category. He took the helm as Western’s 10th president in July 2025, returning to his alma mater nearly 25 years after earning a degree in aviation sciences. With a deep background in public service and higher education leadership, Kavalhuna hit the ground running when he rejoined WMU, engaging closely with the campus community and stakeholders across the region and state.
Western alumni also received recognition in the awards. Tim Rayman, B.B.A.’03, won Newsmaker of the Year in the sports and recreation category. His leadership in the construction of the Kalamazoo Event Center and Athletic Performance Center, which will be home to Western’s hockey and basketball teams beginning in fall 2027, as well as the redesign and renovation of Kalamazoo Country Club were among his notable accomplishments. Thomas Cronkright II, B.B.A.’97, co-founder and executive chairman of fraud prevention firm CertifID, LLC, won Newsmaker of the Year in the tech category for leading his company’s expansion beyond real estate and into the financial and professional services sectors.
“Drs. Lepisto and McIver exemplify what Experience-Driven Learning looks like in action—connecting our students to real-world leadership, entrepreneurship and opportunity,” says Kavalhuna.
“Alongside Tim Rayman and Thomas Cronkright, they reflect the talent, purpose and impact of our Bronco community. We’re proud to see their work recognized across West Michigan.”
Newsmaker finalists are selected by a panel of Crain’s Grand Rapids Business journalists based on the major stories of the past year and the professionals at the heart of those stories.
About Sleeping Giant Capital
Lepisto and McIver launched Sleeping Giant Capital in 2020 and have since grown the firm to support five CEOs and acquire six businesses. In 2025, they announced a new milestone in the company’s growth with a second investment fund—Principled Impact Evergreen Fund II—with $100 million in commitment capital to back aspiring entrepreneurs.
“We started with this kind of audacious idea to raise money from investors, buy West Michigan businesses, convince experienced professionals to leave their job and then somehow grow those companies by tying them to a university—and it’s going beyond what we thought it would be,” says Lepisto. “But my Ph.D. advisor always said, ‘You don’t hit a home run unless you swing for the fence.’ So, we’ve been trying to swing for the fence and make the biggest impact we possibly can on as many people as we possibly can.”
Lepisto says the firm’s business model has already inspired similar projects in other communities, showing the potential future impact of the innovative business concept.
In addition to training business owners and investing in West Michigan companies, Sleeping Giant Capital also gives Western students in the leadership and business strategy program the opportunity to consult with businesses on growth strategy and gain mentorship from CEOs along the way.
“I want Western to be the school of choice for students in Michigan and the Great Lakes region,” Lepisto says. “That means doing things with excellence, doing things that are distinctive and connecting the University to this amazing place called Kalamazoo. It’s super rewarding to see Western’s reputation elevated and enhanced because of all the great work that people are doing and the great success that the University is experiencing.”
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