STAFF
Executive Leadership
Dr. Wendy Mihm-Herold
President & CEO
Our fearless, passionate leader who has nearly 35 years of exemplary expertise working across public and private nonprofit sectors in industries that make up the cornerstones of iJAG.
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Anne Dirkx
Chief Operating Officer
Our all-teams leader works cross-functionally across the organization to deliver superior guidance that supports the way in which we work together, serve our students and uphold meaningful relationships with stakeholders.
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Allyson Vukovich
Vice President of Programs & Employer Engagement
Her speciality is our speciality! School programming and employer engagement are two of our key cornerstones, so we entrust Allyson’s leadership and innovative thinking will continue to bring immediate and long-term success to our stakeholders.
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Ondrea Mysak
Executive Business Partner
As the “glue” of our organization, Ondrea provides reliable support on a wide range of internal and external initiatives through superior organization, management and communication.
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Leadership
Angela De La Riva
Fundraising Officer
Angela works to build strong connections with grant makers across the state to secure vital funding for iJAG.
EMAIL ANGELA
Marcus Lunning
Area Director
Marcus leads iJAG's strategic program development across the state working with school district administration to align program growth and impact for students and communities.
EMAIL MARCUS
Tiffany Fitzpatrick
Controller
Tiffany takes the lead in upholding the organization’s financial integrity, continuously refining and strengthening fiscal control systems to ensure the precise and impactful delivery of resources to drive the iJAG mission forward.
EMAIL TIFFANY
Natalie Lynch
Employer Engagement Partner
Natalie works to build meaningful connections between employers and students statewide, spearheading the development of successful apprenticeship and internship programs while actively engaging with new and existing community partners.
EMAIL NATALIE
Garrett Gobble
Employer Engagement Partner
Garrett coordinates iJAG's efforts to connect students with elected officials and supports middle school programs to develop employer partnerships.
EMAIL GARRETT
Jill Padgett
Director of Employer Strategy & Performance
Jill works to establish robust partnerships that benefit both employers and students, while also spearheading our data collection efforts to ensure accurate and comprehensive information for driving our initiatives forward.
EMAIL JILL
Carly Harper
Director of Development
Carly cultivates robust relationships with funders across the state, securing essential support for iJAG programs to create a lasting impact.
EMAIL CARLY
Lela Scott
Area Director, Eastern Iowa
Lela is responsible for the continual improvement of program operations through coaching Program team members, in-depth knowledge of the iJAG model, and relationships with partners.
EMAIL LELA
National Training Faculty
Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG) relies on a select group of highly experienced and knowledgeable career development experts to guide the success of JAG curriculum, programming and development across 39 state affiliates. We are proud that four National Training Faculty members are right here from Iowa.
Jen Delfs
Learning & Development Business Partner
In addition to serving our iJAG staff's development needs, Jen facilitates program curriculum for JAG members across 39 state affiliates to guide skill competency while leveraging best practices from Iowa's classrooms.
EMAIL JEN
Candice Fedeler
Learning & Development Business Partner
Candice delivers diverse trainings and implements learning strategies to all of iJAG staff as well as facilitating JAG curriculum nationally to elevate program success across 39 state affiliates.
EMAIL CANDICE
Ryan Lootens
Specialist
In addition to serving our iJAG students as a Specialist in the Quad Cities, Ryan specializes in educating Specialists and developing JAG programming for middle schools across the county.
EMAIL RYAN
Daryle Wright
Program Manager
In addition to serving our iJAG students as a Program Manager, Daryle helps support content development, facilitates training sessions and more, both in-person and virtually for small and large groups nationally, statewide and locally.
EMAIL DARYLE
Program Managers
Ashley Ross
North Central Iowa
Ashley leads iJAG programs in North Central Iowa and is a certified trainer for trauma-informed care level 1.
EMAIL ASHLEY
Caitlin Snodgrass
Des Moines Metro
Caitlin leads iJAG programs in the Des Moines Metro. While in her previous role as an iJAG Specialist at Waukee High School, her team won first place at the 2022 National Career Development Conference.
EMAIL CAITLIN
Casey Smith
Eastern Iowa
Casey leads iJAG programs in Eastern Iowa, and what she loves most about her role is the opportunity to serve her hometown and impact future leaders.
EMAIL CASEY
Colleen Theis
South Central Iowa
Colleen leads iJAG programs in South Central Iowa. Her mission is to ensure specialists and their students are equipped with the tools they need to make lasting positive changes in their lives and communities.
EMAIL COLLEEN
Cory Jenkins
Des Moines Metro
Cory leads iJAG programs in the Des Moines metro. He previously served as the iJAG Specialist at Des Moines North High School for 8 years.
EMAIL CORY
Dani McPherson-Palmer
Southwest Iowa
Dani leads iJAG programs in Southwest Iowa. She previously served as the iJAG Specialist at Abraham Lincoln High School in Council Bluffs for 6 years.
EMAIL DANI
Daryle Wright
Central & North Central
In addition to serving our iJAG students as a Program Manager, Daryle helps support content development, facilitates training sessions and more, both in-person and virtually for small and large groups nationally, statewide and locally.
EMAIL DARYLE
Emily Nelson
Central & West Central
Emily leads iJAG programs in Central and West Central Iowa. She previously served as the iJAG Specialist at Boone High School for 3 years.
EMAIL EMILY
Miranda Durham
Eastern Iowa
Miranda leads iJAG programs in Eastern Iowa. She previously served as the iJAG Specialist at Muscatine High School for 4 years.
EMAIL MIRANDA
Nichole Hummell
Southeast Iowa
Nichole leads the iJAG programs in Southeast Iowa. What she enjoys most about her role is the opportunity to serve her hometown community and inspire future leaders.
EMAIL NICHOLE
Rebecca Vasquez
Iowa City - Cedar Rapids Metro
Rebecca leads the iJAG programs in the Iowa City-Cedar Rapids Metro and is proudly an iJAG alum from Dubuque Hempstead High School.
EMAIL REBECCA
Stephanie Flink
East Central
Stephanie leads iJAG programs in East Central Iowa and leads the planning of the Career Development Conference.
EMAIL STEPHANIE
Yen Dao
Eastern Iowa
Yen leads iJAG programs in Eastern Iowa. A fun fact about Yen is that she is a sponsored pickleball player!
EMAIL YEN
Yolanda Harden
North Central Iowa
Yolanda leads iJAG programs in North Central Iowa. What she enjoys most about her role is the opportunity to serve her community and impact future leaders.
EMAIL YOLANDA
Staff Directory
Angela De La Riva: Fundraising Officer – Email Angela
Jillian Deines: Payroll & Accounts Payable – Email Jillian
Makensie Dimmitt: Administrative Assistant Email Makensie
Jen Delfs: Learning & Development Business Partner, National Training Faculty – Email Jen
Anne Dirkx: Chief Operating Officer – Email Anne
Candice Fedeler: Learning & Development Business Partner, National Training Faculty – Email Candice
Tiffany Fitzpatrick: Controller – Email Tiffany
Garrett Gobble: Employer Engagement Partner – Email Garrett
Carly Harper: Director of Development – Email Carly
Ryan Lootens: Specialist, National Training Faculty – Email Ryan
Marcus Lunning: Area Director – Email Marcus
Natalie Lynch: Employer Engagement Partner – Email Natalie
Ondrea Mysak: Executive Business Partner – Email Ondrea
Dr. Wendy Mihm-Herold: CEO & President – Email Wendy
Jill Padgett: Director of Employer Strategy & Performance – Email Jill
Lela Scott: Area Director – Email Lela
Allyson Vukovich: Vice President of Programs & Employer Engagement – Email Allyson
Daryle Wright: Program Manager, National Training Faculty – Email Daryle
Click here for marketing, communications, and media inquiries.
For a full list of our Program Managers, see our program map.