Kathy Markeland, Executive Director, Wisconsin Association of Family & Children’s Agencies (WAFCA)

Kathy joined the WAFCA staff in January 2007 bringing a diverse public policy and member services background. In 2019, she was selected to serve as Executive Director to guide the continued growth of the Association and increase member capacity to deliver outstanding human services that help Wisconsin’s children and families to achieve their full human potential.

Prior to joining WAFCA, Kathy served as an associate director for the Wisconsin Catholic Conference, the public policy voice for Wisconsin’s Roman Catholic bishops. In her eight years with the Conference, Kathy advocated on a wide range of issues from environmental matters to human concerns and health care policy. In addition, she followed state developments related to welfare reform, services for the vulnerable and state and local finance.

In her early career, Kathy spent seven years serving the Wisconsin Counties Association, providing both member support and public policy advocacy services to elected representatives on Wisconsin’s 72 county boards. Her experience with the counties introduced her to a wide range of county services and programs and advanced her knowledge of state and local funding relationships. Her policy focus included human services, nursing homes, county organization and environment and land use management.

She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Behavioral Science and Law in 1992 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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