Advisory Committees
The Harkin Institute’s advisory committees are comprised of experts in their key policy areas. These diverse groups will help define the institute’s research agendas and focus as they relate to wellness and nutrition, retirement security, labor and employment, and people with disabilities.
People with Disabilities Core Advisory Committee
In 2018, The Harkin Institute established a disability policy committee to provide input and help direct the Institute’s research and programming in the area of people with disabilities and disability employment.
Kelly Buckland
Executive Director, National Council on Independent Living (NCIL)
Candace Cable
Nine-time Paralympian and leader in the adaptive sports movement
Caroline Casey
Founder of Binc, social entrepreneur, and speaker
Michael Gamel-McCormick
Disability Policy Director, U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging
Claudia Gordon
Director of Government and Compliance, Sprint Accessibility
Bob Kafka
Disability activist and organizer for ADAPT
Leah Katz-Hernandez
Communications Manager, CEO Office, Microsoft
Charlotte McClain-Nhalpo
Global Disability Advisor in the Social, Urban, Rural and Resilience (GP SURR) Global Practice of the World Bank Group
Susan Sygall
CEO and co-founder, Mobility International USA
Alex Watters
City Council, Sioux City, IA; Adviser, Morningside College
Terry Wilding
Superintendent, Minnesota State Academies
Andy Imparato (Ex-officio member)
Executive Director, Association of University Centers on Disabilities
Amy Hebert-Knopf (Ex-officio member)
The Harkin Institute disability policy research fellow; owner, AccessPlus Global
Xuan Zheng (Ex-officio member)
The Harkin Institute disability policy research fellow; associate professor, Chongqing Normal University in Chongqing, China; visiting professor, St. Cloud State University
Retirement Security Core Advisory Committee
In collaboration with Senator Harkin, the institute’s Retirement Security Core Advisory Committee is working to identify and define the research agenda that will drive The Harkin Institute’s public policy initiatives in retirement security.
The Retirement Security Core Advisory Committee comprises these four esteemed professionals who are national leaders in the field of retirement security.
Michael Kreps
Principal, Groom Law Group
Donna Mueller
Retired CEO, Iowa Public Employees’ Retirement System (IPERS)
Andrew Eschtruth
Associate Director for External Relations, Center for Retirement Research at Boston College
Larry Zimpleman
Retired Board Chairman, Principal
Wellness and Nutrition Core Advisory Committee
Working in collaboration with Senator Harkin, the Wellness and Nutrition Core Advisory Committee has identified and defined the research agenda that drives The Harkin Institute’s public policy initiatives in wellness and nutrition. The committee began meeting early in 2017.
The committee comprises five esteemed professionals who are national leaders in the fields of wellness and nutrition.
Bill Dietz
Director, Sumner M. Redstone Global Center for Prevention and Wellness, Milken Institute School of Public Health, The George Washington University
Risa Lavizzo-Mourey
Former President and CEO, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Dean Ornish
Founder and President, Preventative Medicine Research Institute; Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of California San Francisco
Michael T. Roberts
Founding Executive Director, Resnick Program for Food Law and Policy, UCLA School of Law
Andrew Weil
Founder and Program Director, University of Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine
Address: 2800 University Avenue, Des Moines, IA 50311
Phone: (515) 271-3623
Email: harkininstitute@drake.edu
Office Hours: Monday to Friday 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.