John Cronin has been with the Vermont Securities Division since August of 2001.  As a Securities Examiner his duties include broker/dealer and investment advisor examinations, investigations, consumer complaints, investment advisor and securities registrations and he also acts as the Division’s Investor Education Coordinator. 

Before joining the Securities Division John was a broker/dealer sales representative, investment advisor representative and licensed insurance producer with American Express Financial Advisors.  While with American Express he served as an “advisor coach” to new advisors, was a member of the Vermont recruiting team and was recognized for the quality of his written financial plans. 

John is currently in his fourth year on the North American Securities Administrator’s Association’s Variable Annuity Project Group and in his third year as the Group’s chair.  The Group’s focal points for this year are to monitor how states treat the definition of security in regard to variable annuities and assist NASAA Member agencies in regard to variable annuity issues.  

After a tour in the Marine Corps, he graduated Summa Cum Laude from Champlain College in Burlington, Vermont with a BS in Business Management in 1996.  In 2004 John met the requirements for a Certificate in Financial Accounting also from Champlain College. In December of 2005 John became a Certified Fraud Examiner.

He lives in Milton, Vermont with his wife Debbie. 

Joanne Pencak is a Certified Public Accountant and an assistant professor of accounting at Castleton State College. In addition to teaching various courses at the college, Joanne prepares and presents seminars for area college and high school students on avoiding credit card debt.

Before joining the faculty at Castleton State College, Joanne worked for many years as an accountant, financial planner

and business consultant. She is a graduate of Castleton State College as well as an MBA Candidate at the National Security Administration’s Center for Excellence in Information Security at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia.

Joanne lives in Rutland with her husband Greg and their two children, Lucas and Benjamin.

John began his regulatory career in 1995 with the Arizona Corporation Commission’s Securities Division.  In 2001, he left his position as a Senior Financial Institution Examiner with the Commission to join the Vermont Department of Banking, Insurance, Securities and Health Care Administration’s Securities Division where he performs numerous tasks including: broker-dealer and investment adviser examinations; investment adviser and corporation finance registrations; investment adviser outreach; investor education; investigations; and enforcement. 

John was intimately involved in Vermont’s introduction and subsequent passage of the 2002 Uniform Securities Act.  He is now working with the Department’s Office of General Counsel in drafting new regulations to
accompany the Act.

John previously served two years on the North American Securities Administrators Association’s (“NASAA”) Technology

Planning & Coordination Project Group and he is currently serving his fifth year on the Investment Adviser Operations Project Group.  John has trained examiners and investigators from around the country in the use of the NASAA Examination Modules and has been utilized as a speaker/group leader in the NASAA Broker-Dealer and Investment Adviser Training
programs for many years.  He is presently working with several NASAA members and a computer systems developer to update the NASAA Examination Modules to a database format. John also assists the NASAA Exams Advisory Project Group in its annual item writing and review meetings, developing and vetting examination questions for the Series 63, 65 and 66 securities license examinations.

John is married to Heather, his wife of 15 years, and has three children, Samantha, age 14, John III, age 12, and Joseph, age 8.  John and his family reside in Barre, Vermont.

Bill Carrigan has been with the Vermont Securities Division since October of 2007. As a Securities Examiner his duties include examinations of broker/dealer and investment advisor firms and individuals, investigations, consumer complaints, securities offering registrations and the registration for investment advisors. Bill also provides Investor Education workshops and seminars throughout Vermont.

Prior to joining the Securities Division, Bill served in multiple capacities within the securities field in his 15 years in the industry. His background includes serving as a compliance analyst

for a large broker/dealer firm, broker/dealer registered representative, investment advisor representative, licensed insurance producer and also manager of broker/dealer operations.

Bill is a US Navy veteran and lives in South Burlington, Vermont with his wife Mary Ann. They have two children, Billy, currently a Senior at Pace University in Pleasantville, NY, and Brittany, currently a Freshman at Bryant University in RI. Bill is also an ice hockey official at the youth and high school levels, and is also a men’s lacrosse official at the youth, high school and college levels.