Elisabeth Buck

Elisabeth Buck became President of United Way of Central Iowa in May 2017 after serving as Chief Community Impact Officer since January 2011. As United Way of Central Iowa’s chief executive, Elisabeth leads strategies to achieve substantive community impact in the priority areas of Education, Income, and Health to improve lives and build a stronger central Iowa. Prior to joining United Way, she served as Governors Vilsack and Culver’s Deputy Chief of Staff from 1999-2007 until her appointment as Governor Culver’s Director of Iowa Workforce Development (IWD) in 2007. During her time in this position, Elisabeth transformed IWD into a client-centered environment and integrated the Workforce Centers with partners to provide seamless employment services and up-skilling activities for Iowans. She also led the Governor’s initiatives that addressed misclassification of workers and ex-offender reentry. Elisabeth earned a BA in political science from Iowa State University, where she served as student body president. She went on to be named 2002 Leader of the Year in Iowa State Government, 2004 Volunteer of the Year, received the AFSCME Leadership Award in 2006, and was honored as a 2015 Business Record Woman of Influence.