The State of Wisconsin is becoming less and less of a “flyover state” in part because of the talent produced here, according to a panel of investors at the Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Conference held Tuesday at Union South.

Craig Schedler of NM Future Ventures dispelled some myths about the Midwest.

“Truisms like not being able to get engineers here don’t hold anymore,” Schedler said.

Schedler’s comments were part of a larger discussion on the talent pool in Wisconsin. Several panelists referenced the Money magazine annual list of “Top 10 Colleges of Fortune 500 CEOs,” which saw the University of Wisconsin alongside Ivy League schools such as Princeton.

“(UW) always surprises people with the list (of alma maters of) CEOs in the Fortune 500,” Greg Baker of Bascom Ventures said.

It also helps that Wisconsin is a desirable place to live, according to George Arida of 30Ventures.

“A lot of the talent that we’ve grown is still here in the state,” Arida said. “Even people who were gone for a decade or a decade-and-a-half wanted to come back.”

The annual conference continues through Wednesday.