Forty leaders from across Iowa have been selected as members of the 2015-16 class of Leadership Iowa, the premier issues-awareness program of the Iowa Association of Business and Industry Foundation.
The eight-month program is designed to foster a passion for civic engagement in current and emerging leaders.
“We are excited to welcome a new group of our state’s brightest leaders to take part in this enriching program,” said Mike Ralston, president of the Iowa Association of Business and Industry and a 1991 graduate of Leadership Iowa. “For the past 34 years, Leadership Iowa has been helping to shape participants who’ve gone on to make great strides as leaders in our communities, our businesses and our state.”
The 2015-16 class will travel to communities throughout the state for a series of two-day sessions from October through June. Topics covered during these sessions will include education, economic development, government, agriculture and renewable energy, public safety and business and industry.
Since its inception in 1982, Leadership Iowa has graduated more than 1,000 individuals from both the private and public sector, representing each geographical region of Iowa. Each year, approximately 40 talented individuals are selected from a large applicant pool based on achieving the best balance of qualified candidates for a particular year.
Source: ABI
Leadership Iowa 2015-16 Class
| Name | Company | Home City / Work City |
| Kelly Barrick | GE Capital | Johnston / Johnston |
| Sarah Bey | UNI Center for Business Growth and Innovation | Cedar Falls / Cedar Falls |
| Bret Braafhart | Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation | Pleasant Hill / Des Moines |
| Deb Brown | Webster City Area Chamber of Commerce | Webster City / Webster City |
| Scott Burns | Pella Corporation | Pella / Pella |
| Erin Campbell | Iowa Association of Electric Cooperatives | Urbandale / Des Moines |
| Susan Corrigan | St. Martin Land Company | Cedar Rapids / Cedar Rapids |
| Jennifer Crimmins | Citizens Community Credit Union | Fort Dodge / Fort Dodge |
| Brian Crotty | HDH Advisors, LLC | West Des Moines / West Des Moin |
| Elizabeth Dawley | Scottish Rite Park | Des Moines / Des Moines |
| Jason (Jay) Ferris | Veridian Credit Union | Council Bluffs / Council Bluffs |
| Lance Henning | Greater Des Moines Habitat for Humanity | Ankeny / Des Moines |
| Brent Hinders | Hopkins & Huebner, P.C. | Norwalk / Des Moines |
| Ganesh Jayaram | SSAB Iowa Inc. | Bettendorf / Muscatine |
| Matt Joens | Palmer Group | Ankeny / West Des Moines |
| Adam Koppes | Iowa Farm Bureau Federation | Des Moines / West Des Moines |
| Claire Masker | National Pork Board | Urbandale / Clive |
| Matthew McKinney | BrownWinick Law Firm | West Des Moines / Des Moines |
| Jeff Menary | Grinnell Mutual Reinsurance Company | Grinnell / Grinnell |
| Joe Murphy | Iowa State University | West Des Moines / Ames |
| Humphrey Mwangi | First Resources Corporation | Sigourney / Sigourney |
| Jennifer Neumann | de Novo Alternative Marketing | Cedar Rapids / Cedar Rapids |
| John Osako | Informatics, Inc | Cedar Rapids / Cedar Rapids |
| Nicole Peckumn | Kemin Industries | Des Moines / Des Moines |
| Melissa Reade | Greater Cedar Valley Alliance & Chamber | Cedar Falls / Waterloo |
| John Schreier | The Daily Nonpareil | Council Bluffs / Council Bluffs |
| Wendy Schultz | City of Council Bluffs | Council Bluffs / Council Bluffs |
| Bobbi Segura | Iowa Women Lead Change (IWLC) | Des Moines / Des Moines |
| Ryan Sheets | University of Iowa, Tippie College of Business | Iowa City / Iowa City |
| Dave Slade | Renewable Energy Group | Ames / Ames |
| Andy Sokolovich | Bent Business Marketing & Advertising | Clinton / Clinton |
| Megan Sorensen | Children’s Hospital & Medical Center | Council Bluffs / Omaha |
| Alyssa Sundell | DuPont Pioneer | West Des Moines / Johnston |
| JR Textor | Hubbell Realty Company | Des Moines / West Des Moines |
| Emily Toribio | Fareway Stores, Inc. | Des Moines / Boone |
| Dale Vander Berg | Peoples Bank | Sioux Center / Sioux Center |
| Anthony Vaughn | Alliant Energy | Steamboat Rock / Iowa Falls |
| Julie West | PCG Marketing / West Works | Altoona / Altoona |
| Bethany Wilcoxon | Capital Crossroads | Des Moines / Des Moines |
