Victoria (Ray) Carlson is the daughter of Iowa’s 38th Governor, and was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis at the age of 16. She has been involved in a number of government and disability organizations throughout her life, and has been a fierce disability rights advocate for many years.

Jesse Hawkins is a 29-year-old who has dealt with ADD his entire life. He lives in Urbandale, Iowa, and works in the banking industry. His volunteerism and disability advocacy journey began with Special Olympics.

Janae Burgmeier is a recent graduate of the Masters of Business Administration program at Drake University. She works at Iowa State University as a Grants Finance Specialist.

Edward Esbeck‘s dream is to help people around the world overcome their challenges with disability and to let other people see them accomplish their goals. In 2019, he began working for the University of Iowa hospital.

Matt Grillot shares that he is a 43-year-old power wheelchair using quadriplegic. For as long as he can remember, he’s spoken up for his rights as a person with a disability and those of others when and where he could.

Sarah Martinez has served as the Executive Director of Access 2 Independence of the Eastern Iowa Corridor, Inc. in Iowa City, Iowa since 2019.

Jonathan (Jon) Raley, a recent honor’s graduate of Coe College and entrepreneur, serves also as the  Chair of the Resource Development Committee. He is planning on attending law school in the Fall of 2021.

Amy Robasse has an MA in Disability Studies, and is a voting member of the Council. Her own personal experiences with disability have given her insight, compassion, and patience as she works to help others understand the disability experience.

Applications are currently under review. An Applicant will be appointed by the Governor to serve on the Council.

Applications are currently under review. An Applicant will be appointed by the Governor to serve on the Council.

Vienna Hoang has been serving Iowans with disabilities for almost 30 years. In her current role, she provides supports to counselors, Community Rehabilitation Providers (CRPs), and partnering agencies.

Kim Barber is the Program Manager for the Independent Living Program at the Iowa Department for the Blind (IDB), one of two state agencies that collaborates with the SILC.

Pam Mollenhauer has worked in the field of Public and Environmental Health for many years. Currently, she serves as the State and Area Plan Manager and Community Engagement Liaison at the Iowa Department on Aging.

The Statewide Independent Living Council (SILC) is a federally mandated, Governor appointed Council. The SILC has 10 Voting Member positions and three Ex-Officio Non-Voting Member positions, for a total of 13 positions. At least 51% of the SILC Council must be persons with disabilities who do not work for a State agency or a Center for Independent Living.

Of the three ex-officio positions,

• one must be filled by a staff member from the Designated State Entity (DSE), which is the State Agency that receives the federal Part B funds and the State funds for Independent Living for the SILC and the CILs, and who administers those funds to the SILC and CILs. In Iowa, the DSE is Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services (IVRS). IVRS is also one of the State partners that utilizes a portion of those Part B funds, and matching Part B State funds, to operate Independent Living Services in their agency.
• One position must be filled by a staff member from the Designated State Unit (DSU), which is Iowa Department for the Blind (IDB). IDB is one of the State partners that receives a portion of the federal Part B funds, and matching Part B State funds, to operate Independent Living Services in their agency.
• The third ex-officio, non-voting position must be filled by a staff person from a state agency that works with disability issues. Historically that third position has been filled by a staff person from the Iowa Department on Aging (IDA).

The 10 Voting Members of the SILC must represent a broad range of individuals with different types of disabilities, from all across the state. The Council annually elects a President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary from among the Voting Members of the Council.