ABOUT SACK

Lisa Barcus grew up in Grand Island, Nebraska. She has lived in Lawrence, Kansas for many years now, and has been employed at McDonald’s for twelve years. Lisa sits on the board of directors for the Arc of Douglas County. She is past President and current Vice President for the Self Advocates of Lawrence, (SAL). Lisa has been a successful Special Olympics weightlifter (she totaled 415 lbs. for deadlift, squat, and bench). She has completed the Kansas Leadership Center’s “My Leadership Edge'' program. Lisa is passionate about changing federal regulations that keep people with disabilities from getting married because they would lose valuable and necessary benefits.

Robyn Herzog hails from Burlingame, Kansas. She has lived in Lawrence since 2006. She sits on the board for the Disability Rights Center of Kansas. Robyn is also a representative to the Kansas Commission on Disability Concerns. In addition, she sits on the Arc of Douglas County’s board of directors. Robyn has worked for a local child care provider for three years as a lead teacher. Robyn is passionate about changing federal law regarding subminimum wages for people with disabilities. She believes people should be paid equally for their time and that being paid in a “piece-rate” manner is unfair. Robyn has spoken to a lot of legislators about various bills she has supported, and also traveled to Washington, D.C. for a leadership conference. She has also completed “My Leadership Edge” training at the Kansas Leadership Center in Wichita.

Phillip McGruder joined SACK in June of 2020. He is a Kansas City, KS native. Phillip graduated from Washington High School in 2010 and the University of Kansas in 2017. During Phillip’s time at the University of Kansas, he created the campus group “Believe Autism Matters” (BAM). BAM was created to bringing awareness and education about autism. He has also been a member of the Kansas Disability Caucus since January of 2021. Before Phillip arrived at SACK, he spent the last 2 years working for the Kansas City Chiefs. He currently works for them during the NFL season as an Event Services team member. Because of his personal experience with being on the spectrum, his focus is to support families with individuals on the autism spectrum and to work with community partners to build understanding and find ways to better support these individuals and families in the community.

Colin Olenick is SACK’s Legislative Liaison. He tracks the movement of legislation effecting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Kansas. He also provides testimony to the Kansas Legislature regarding the impact of proposed bills on Kansans with disabilities. Colin has been employed with SACK since 2018. Colin was Vice President for the Self Advocate Coalition of Kansas (SACK) from 2007-2008. He was an Employment First presenter and founder of the Kansas Employment First Committee. He also participated in Kansas' Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and related Disabilities (LEND) training program, which is a University of Kansas post-graduate program in which he shared his experience of having cerebral palsy, autism, and ADHD. Colin is an alumnus of the Kansas Leadership Center (KLC); a graduate of the “My Leadership Edge” program. He was additionally a member of Kansas ADAPT from 2003-2007. Colin is also involved in the Transition work group, funded through the Administration on Community Living by way of a grant to University of Kansas. Previously, Colin was employed with Cinemark in Merriam, KS for 16 years. Colin currently lives in Olathe, KS with his cat, Elizabeth. Colin collects fire station patches from across the country and hopes to display them all someday.

Kelly Smith is a self-advocate currently employed at the Self Advocate Coalition of Kansas. Her position as Plain Language Specialist allows her to both advocate and assist in the development of the use of plain language. Kelly is also the lead self-advocate on the “KS Believe” team and regularly presents on the intersection of violence and disability. Kelly also belongs to the local “Justice Matters” group, an interfaith, non-profit organization. In her free time Kelly enjoys spending quality time with her cat, Max.

Stephanie Sanford is the Advocacy Coordinator and Support Staff for the Self Advocate Coalition of Kansas (SACK). Stephanie began working for SACK in 2014 as the Self-Advocacy Coordinator and support staff for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Prior to working at SACK, Stephanie advocated for people with disabilities for more than 12 years while employed at Kansas independent living center agencies. Stephanie was raised by a single parent with a disability and has been a disability rights advocate her entire life.

Jaclyn Anderson, Project Coordinator, has been a member of the SACK team since August 2019. Jaclyn has worked in the disability field in one way or another for most of her life. She has been employed as a direct care provider, a case manager and IL Counselor, a program and waiver manager, and she also provided accommodations to students with disabilities in higher education for twelve years. Jaclyn got her undergraduate degree from KU and her Master’s in Rehabilitation Administration from Drake University. She lives in Lawrence with her teenage daughter and 3 cats.