Lisa M. Peyton, MS.Ed.

Lisa Peyton is the Founding CEO & President of The Foundation for Black Women’s Wellness. Her work as a passionate advocate for women’s health was spurred by Mother’s untimely death at age 64 from heart disease in 2006, after which Lisa established Black Women’s Wellness Day, an annual summit now in its 15th year that empowers women and girls to sustain healthy, wellness-centered lives. The Foundation is an outgrowth and progression of this work which has mobilized a movement in Greater Madison and across Wisconsin to intentionally address and improve Black women’s health. In January 2020, Peyton and team opened Dane County’s first Black Women’s Wellness Center after a successful crowdfunding effort that garnered Lisa and FFBWW national recognition as a GoFundMe Hero making significant local impact. Each year, the Foundation reaches and serves over 7,000 women and their families through a broad array of programs, services and advocacy work, and has grown to have national reach through its many strategic partnerships and its growing network of Wellness Ambassadors now representing 15 states across the USA.

Based on her work and impact, Lisa was appointed in 2018 to serve on newly elected Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers’ Health Policy Advisory Council through which she was able to influence proposed policies addressing maternal and child health and health disparities in our State. In 2020, she was appointed by Governor Evers to serve on the first ever Wisconsin Health Equity Council, a statewide body that recently released a comprehensive report, Building a Better Wisconsin: Investing in the Health and Well-being of Wisconsinites, to advance health equity for all.

Lisa also previously served as Assistant Vice President of Life, Learning and Events at Summit Credit Union (2014-2018) where she and her team led the company’s efforts on Diversity & Inclusion, Employee Wellness, Financial Education, Community Giving, and Corporate Events.

An experienced leader, manager, and educator, Lisa has led impactful work over the past 20+ years spanning the PreK – 16 education, non-profit, women’s health, and financial service sectors. She is actively engaged in a number of local efforts to promote thriving, sustainable communities, and serves on the board of the United Way of Dane County, and previously on the boards of Unity Point-Meriter Health, the Center for Resilient Cities, the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute Advisory Board, Sustain Dane, and A Fund for Women. Among her lasting contributions to community is the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s highly successful DoIT Information Technology Academy (ITA), a pre-college technology training & college access program she conceived, designed and launched with colleagues in 1999 and now in its 24th year.

Lisa has been widely recognized for her work in women’s health, leadership, business, and community stewardship. She is the recipient of a 2022 Brian D. Howell Excellence in Innovation Award by Madison Magazine’s Best of Madison Business Awards, and in 2021 was awarded the Jeffrey Clay Erlanger Civility in Public Discourse Award which recognizes City of Madison residents who share Erlanger’s dedication to and passion for public policy, civility, individual and human rights. In 2017, Peyton was named among local health innovators on the Madison Magazine’s 2017 M List. In 2016 she was recognized as one of 44 Most Influential African Americans in Wisconsin by Madison365 Magazine. Other honors include the Wisconsin Alliance for Women’s Health Woman of Character Award (2015) for her efforts to mobilize Black women and partners to eliminate health disparities. She is the 2014 recipient of the Public Health Madison & Dane County Leadership Award, 2014 Brava Magazine Woman to Watch, 2014 Distinguished Community Service Award 2014 Distinguished Community Service Award issued by Madison Metropolitan Chapter of the Links, and was nominated an “Everyday Health Hero” by the Wisconsin Women’s Health Foundation in 2013. Additionally, she is a 2008 UW Alumni Association Forward Under Forty Award honoree for her service and impact on the world by living the Wisconsin Idea.

A Mother of five, Lisa holds a Masters of Science degree in Educational Leadership & Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is also a proud former Hampton University student, home of the Pirates, where she completed her first three years of undergraduate studies.