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Staff
Chris O'Brien
Chris’ role is to develop and implement strategic planning to meet specific grants-related goals of Kirkwood, the region, and the state of Iowa. She leads the grants team in working closely with Kirkwood faculty, staff, and administrators—as well as key stakeholders—to identify funding opportunities, facilitate the grant process, and ensure contract compliance. Chris previously worked in proposal management at Rockwell Collins, and has more than 25 years of experience performing public relations and marketing communications services for corporate, municipal government, higher education, and K-12 organizations. Chris has a master’s degree in English (business and technical communication) and a bachelor’s degree in journalism and political science, both from Iowa State University.
Laura Donovan Laura joined Kirkwood in September 2008 as a Project Coordinator for Community Colleges for International Development (CCID). She has been in the Grants Services office since July 2009 as the CCID Grants Officer. CCID administers cooperative agreements awarded from the U.S. Department of State. Laura’s role in Grants Services is overseeing all compliance issues. Laura earned her AAS degree in Accounting from Kirkwood in May 2008. She is currently enrolled at Mt. Mercy College in Cedar Rapids working toward her bachelor’s degree in Accounting.
John MacGregor John brings experience in higher education administration, sales and marketing, and new business development to the grant development team. From 1986-1993, he was alumni director at Cornell College where he was a member of the president's cabinet, participated in strategic planning, and supported resource development through the shared management of the College's volunteer networks. Before joining Kirkwood, he represented Stamats Communications, a nationally recognized consulting and marketing organization that provides services and products to institutions of higher education throughout the United States. John's responsibilities at Stamats included business opportunity analysis, the development of proposals and presentations, sales, and client relationship management. MacGregor's previous experience includes service in the U.S. Peace Corps (Brazil), administrative work with Project Hope (Jamaica and Brazil), sales and project management in the pre-press industry, and teaching at the secondary level. He earned a B.A. (History) from Cornell College and his M.A.T. (History and Education) from Yale.
Debbie Mrkvicka Debbie began her Kirkwood career in November 2000 as Grant Development Officer. Debbie graduated magna cum laude and with distinction in the Honors program in May of 2000 from Mt. Mercy College in Cedar Rapids. Debbie has her BA in English with a minor in creative writing. Debbie's role in Grants Services consists of: implementing grants management requirements for funded projects; conducting research; reviewing Request for Proposals (RFPs); and establishing task timelines to ensure project deadline dates are met. Debbie monitors progress on the various steps of proposal development and keeps the grants team on track with individual assignments. In addition, she edits proposals prior to submission. Debbie works directly with the principal investigators on Kirkwood sponsored programs to ensure they complete their required program reports to the funding agencies in a timely manner. In addition, she works with the funding source's Program Officers, so the college continues to build positive working relationships. Debbie currently serves on Kirkwood's Employee Recognition Committee. Her expertise in organizational, technological and technical skills assists her in streamlining the processes to successfully accomplish her varied duties and promote successful program completion at Kirkwood Community College.
Sue Reyhons Sue Reyhons is currently the Office Coordinator for the Grants Services Department. She joined the department in September 2005. Prior to assuming her duties as Office Coordinator for the department, Sue worked as Office Assistant for the ISU Outreach Center on the Kirkwood main campus for five years. She worked part-time in the Kirkwood Community College Human Resources Office at Kirkwood from the fall of 1990 to January 1993, and served as secretary of the Residence Life office at Cornell College in Mt Vernon, Iowa from January 1993 to September 1996. Sue is responsible for supporting the efforts of the department’s administrator, the proposal writing and grants management team.
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