Winona ORC is the community leader in providing job opportunities for people with disabilities, helping them realize their potential. Winona ORC provides job related services to people with barriers to employment in Southeast Minnesota.

• Responsible for the 7 offices of underrepresented Iowans including: Latino Affairs, African Americans, Persons with Disabilities, Deaf Services, Native Americans, Asian Pacific Islanders, and Status of Women• Serve in the Director's absence • Oversee the 7 commissions associated with each office• Manage the projects of each office as well as staff that work in each office• Responsible for the budget of the CAS Division• Represent the department at various events such as Iowa Women's Hall of Fame, MLK Day, and youth initiatives such as Iowa Youth Congress and Youth Leadership Forum• As Deputy Director I was the lead for the department's Outreach project. I travelled around the state of Iowa to learn about the barriers that underrepresented Iowans are facing around social supports, employment, education, and healthcare. Visited 13 communities and creating a report for each meeting as well as an overall statewide report.

• Oversaw the statewide disabilities program at LSI. Managed a 3-tiered management level with over 450+ staff that provide Daily and Hourly Supported Community Living Services and Respite Services• Managed an $8 million budget and responsible to find solutions when productivity expectations were not met.• Due to an IRS ruling in September 2011, helped convert over 300 independent contractors that provided respite into employees.• Oversaw the development of a new program, First Circle Friends; it was designed for respite for persons with memory loss, including Alzheimer and dementia.

• Managed the Neuro-Resource Facilitation (NRF) services and four NRF staff• I trained across the state of Iowa on several topics, including Brain Injury 101, Positive Behavioral Supports, and The Helping Exchange: A Foundation for Interaction with Individuals with Brain Injury and their Families• Market Neuro-Resource Facilitation Services to health care companies including lawyers, insurance companies, and hospitals, etc.• Support group liaison between the association and the support group leaders• Act as project manager with staff's projects such at lunch and learns, facilitating Family Conferences around the state, peer to peer mentoring program and ACBIS certification trainings.• Work with the Governor's appointed Advisory Council on Brain Injury and the Iowa Dept of Public Health's Program Manager staff that oversee the BIA-IA's HRSA federal grant and state contract.• Also on local advisory council for community provider of services.• Developed community connections with Iowa Brain Injury Resource Network (IBRN) sites/health care facilities and increased IBIRN locations across Iowa. • Wrote two successful grants: One at Prairie Meadows for $12,000 and the other one was working collaborating with the Iowa Dept. of Public Health for a Federal HRSA grant.• Work on legislative priorities by attending workgroup meetings and working with the BIA-IA lobbyist, as a result was able to get the "Return to Play" legislation for students with concussions in school sanctioned sports.

• Coordinated and Managed Hourly Supported Community Living and Respite services for people with disabilities statewide.• Supervised 3 Regional Coordinators that oversee services in three statewide regions. • Resided on various committees at Lutheran Services in Iowa that improved the quality of services, including the Evaluation Tool committee and CQI (Continuous Quality Improvement) committee.• Created and maintained statewide program budgets for Hourly SCL and Respite Services.• Involved in advocacy at the local and state level, including talking to state representatives at the Capital, on various county Mental Health funds committees and boards, and have been politically active in my party to make sure the issues of the disability community are known.• Helped develop an evaluation tool with other leadership across the agency. This tool is still used at LSI.