Connie Lawson is Indiana’s 61st Secretary of State. A tireless advocate for improving elections in Indiana, increasing Indiana’s financial literacy and protecting Indiana investors, Secretary Lawson is also directing substantial innovation and leveraging cutting edge technology to improve how businesses interact with government which is what she will discuss at Rotary on Tuesday.

Secretary Lawson will offer Rotary members a review of Indiana’s new crowdfunding rules, which give entrepreneurs an opportunity to learn about new ways to raise capital and give investors an opportunity to learn about new ways to invest in Indiana. She will also talk about her office’s Business One-Stop project, which will allow Hoosier business owners to connect to all of state government from one portal.  Finally, she will discuss Benefit Corporations, a new way to structure a business with a defined social or environmental purpose.

Secretary Lawson lends her substantial leadership experience to help great organizations.  She is a regional vice president of the National Association of Secretaries of State, an honorary governor of the Richard G. Lugar Excellence in Public Service Series, the honorary chairwoman of the Lupus Foundation of Indiana, and a co-chair of the Hendricks County United Way to name just a few.

Prior to serving as Secretary of State, Lawson served in the Indiana Senate for sixteen years, where she accomplished significant legislative success. Respected across the aisle, she quickly earned the admiration of her colleagues and made history in 2006 when she was selected as the first woman to serve as Majority Floor Leader in the Indiana Senate.