Agenda
A DAY OF DIALOGUE ON DIRECT CARE WORKFORCE ISSUES
8:00 AM
Breakfast
Continental Breakfast
8:30 AM
Greeting
Dr. Rob Denson, President, Des Moines Area Community College
Welcome
Elisabeth Buck, Board Chair, Iowa CareGivers
Setting the Stage
Di Findley, Executive Director, Iowa CareGivers
8:45 AM
Panel 1: Those with Lived Experience
Home Care Employer: First Last
Family Caregiver: First Last
Consumer: Alex Watters
9:30 AM
2025 Direct Care Worker Wage and Benefit Survey Results
Ryan Murphy, Division Administrator, Labor Market Information Division, Iowa Workforce Development
10:00 AM
2024 Asset Limited Income Constrained Employed (ALICE) Report
Pending
10:15 AM
Break
10:30 AM
Panel 2: A Conversation With Local Experts
Several state-led initiatives are currently underway, and each has a component in their reports and recommendations that are specific to direct care worker wages, education, and portability of credentials. The Representatives, listed below, will each respond to a few questions and then receive questions from the participants.
Eugenia Kendall, MSW, Strategic Planning and Assessment Coordinator, Division of Aging & Disability Services, Iowa Department of Health and Human Services Recommendations on Direct Care Worker Wages and Portability of Credentials by Healthy Iowans, Iowa Solutions for Aging with Independence and Longevity (IA SAILS), Multi-Sector Plan on Aging and Disability
Shalome Tonelli, PhD, RN, Assistant Professor of Instruction, Certification Center Director, College of Nursing: Iowa’s Direct Care Worker Registry and Credentialing
Greg Woods, MPH, Program Coordinator, Public Health Division, Iowa Department of Health, and Human Services: Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD) BOLD Initiative
Kathy Leggett, Business Engagement Liaison, Business Engagement, Iowa Workforce Development: Iowa’s Technical Assistance Grant, National Direct Care Workforce Strategies Center
11:30 AM
Lunch
12:00 PM
Direct Care Workforce – National Environmental Scan
Stephen McCall, PHI National
In Dialogue: Working Together to Improve Direct Care Worker Job Quality in Iowa
Stephen McCall is the Director of Research at PHI, where he leads the organization’s applied research to improve the quality of direct care jobs and long-term services for older adults and people with disabilities. Collaborating closely with the Research & Evaluation team and other departments, Stephen develops and oversees studies, disseminates findings, and supports PHI’s position as a national leader in direct care workforce research. Before assuming his current role, Stephen was a Senior Analyst at Altarum, where he led mixed-methods research and evaluation projects on various topics for state and federal partners. Prior to that role, Stephen spent eight years as a researcher and analyst at PHI. Stephen holds an MPA from the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs at Baruch College and a BA in Political Science and Chinese from the University of California, Berkeley.
3:00 PM
Closing Evaluations & Next Steps
Renee Miller, Consultant, Iowa CareGivers
3:15 PM
Adjourn
