Washington, D.C. – The National Academy of Social Insurance is pleased to announce the election of several of the nation’s top social insurance experts to steer its Board of Directors and the election of 90 new Academy Members—the largest and most diverse new member class in the Academy’s 40 year history.
New Board Members
Newly joining the Academy’s Board of Directors are Tricia Neuman, Chad Bolt, Katherine Hempstead, Joshua McCabe, Robert “Bob” Blancato, and Stuart Butler. Tracey Gronniger was elected as the Board’s Secretary.
“Our new Board members’ unique skills and vision will enrich the Academy’s work,” said Board Chair Paul Van de Water. “I thank them for serving and look forward to an exciting and productive 2026.”
New Membership Class
The Academy is thrilled to welcome a diverse and distinguished class of 90 social insurance leaders as new Members, who were inducted at the Academy’s Annual Membership Meeting last week. Academy Members are nominated by current Members in recognition of significant contributions such as research, administration, policymaking, direct service, and/or advocacy in one or more areas of social insurance.
“We’re thrilled to welcome our newly elected Members, whose diverse expertise—from research and policymaking to advocacy and service—will help shape the Academy’s work at this pivotal moment,” said John Slatery, Chair of the Academy’s Membership Committee.
Newly elected Academy Members and their affiliations at the time of nomination:
- Ariana Aboulafia, Center for Democracy and Technology
- Joan Alker, Center for Children and Families, McCourt School of Public Policy, Georgetown University
- Kate Bahn, Institute for Women’s Policy Research
- Peggy Bailey, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
- Bridget Bearden, Employee Benefit Research Institute
- Meg Booth, AARP Foundation
- Hayley Brown, Center for Economic and Policy Research
- Joseph Caldwell, Community Living Policy Center, Brandeis University
- Andrea Callow, AARP Public Policy Institute
- Alfred Campos, National Retired Teachers Association, AARP
- Rachel Chinetti, Elevance Health
- James Christian-Blockwood, National Academy of Public Administration
- Alex Coccia, Financial Security Program, Aspen Institute
- Allison Cook, Better Aging and Policy Consulting
- Jennifer Cronenberg, National Organization of Social Security Claimants’ Representatives
- Jamie Daw, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health
- Marissa Ditkowsky, Tzedek DC
- Tim Engelhardt, Aging & Disability Health Policy Lab
- Ruth Finkelstein, Brookdale Center on Aging, Hunter College
- Meredith Freed, KFF
- Callie Freitag, Sandra Rosenbaum School of Social Work, University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Arpit Garg, Atticus
- Ted Gayer, Niskanen Center
- Max Ghenis, PolicyEngine
- Gopi Shah Goda, The Brookings Institution
- Linsay Goldman, Grantmakers in Aging
- Nanette Goodman, Burton Blatt Institute, Syracuse University
- Lydia Gottesfeld, Community Legal Services of Philadelphia
- Devon Gray, End Poverty in CA
- Hannah Groch-Begley, Roosevelt Institute
- Nick Gwyn, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
- Nicole Heckman, Financial Wellbeing Programs, AARP
- Ryann Hill, Indigo Hill Strategies
- Nicole Howell, National Council on Aging
- Mia Ives-Rublee, Disability Justice Initiative, Center for American Progress
- Vijeth Iyengar, AARP
- Jennifer Langer Jacobs, Carelon Health
- David Jimenez, Niskanen Center
- Pamela Joshi, Boston University School of Social Work
- Jason Kanter, Kanter Strategies
- Justin King, Propel
- Ali Khawar, FCP
- Kristen Kiefer, Generations United
- Morris Klein, Attorney at Law
- Bobby Kogan, Center for American Progress
- Rita Landgraf, University of Delaware
- Greg Leiserson, Tax Law Center, NYU
- Michael Levere, Colgate University
- Sharon Lewis, Ross, Dalte, & Associates
- Jammie Lyell, AARP
- Karen Lyons, Office of Policy Development and Integration, AARP
- Amy Marinacci, Legal Council for Health Justice
- Dylan Matthews, Coefficient Giving
- Stephen McGraw, Social Security Administration
- Martin McGuinness, Unum
- Katherine Michelmore, University of Michigan
- Nick Molling, United States Senate
- Zach Morris, Stony Brook University
- Ian Moura, Lurie Institute for Disability Policy, Brandeis University
- Sarah Mysiewicz, U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, & Pensions
- Alyson Northrup, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
- Devin O’Connor, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
- Flannery O’Rourke, National Employment Law Project
- Lindsay Owens, Groundwork Collaborative
- Aron Paquette, Unum
- Ankita Patnaik, Mathematica
- Joshua Pearson, The Harkin Institute & Winona State University
- John Poulos, Autistic Self Advocacy Network
- Sarah Prenovitz, Mathematica
- Susann Rohwedder, RAND School of Public Policy
- John Sabelhaus, Congressional Budget Office
- Michael Sinacore, U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, & Pensions
- Michelle Spadafore, New York Legal Assistance Group
- Megan Stockhausen, American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO
- Shayna Strom, Washington Center for Equitable Growth
- Megan Thomas, Aurrera Health Group
- Dan Treglia, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Rutgers University
- Sarah Triano, Center for Health Care Strategies
- Jason Turkish, Nyman Turkish PC
- Jason Tyszko, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation
- Brendan Duke, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
- Laura Van Tosh, Mental Health Policy Roundtable
- Darren Webb, Mindset
- Molly Weston Williamson, Center for American Progress
- Elizabeth Wilkins, Roosevelt Institute
- Michelle Yin, School of Education and Social Policy, Northwestern University
- Na Yin, Marxe School, Baruch College
- Haeyoung Yoon, National Domestic Workers Alliance
- Andrew Youngman, Citizens Disability
- Mingli Zhong, Urban Institute
About the National Academy of Social Insurance
Founded in 1986, the National Academy of Social Insurance is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization made up of the nation’s leading experts on social insurance policy, practice, research, and innovation. From Social Security and Supplemental Security Income; to Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act; to Workers’ Compensation and Unemployment Insurance; to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, and income-boosting tax credits, America’s social insurance ecosystem serves as the bedrock of economic protection against the risks of life — such as when we retire, lose a job, experience disability/illness, or lose a family breadwinner. For nearly 40 years, the Academy and its powerful, diverse member network have championed the safeguarding, strengthening, and modernizing of social insurance and worked to increase public understanding of how it contributes to economic security.
Contact: Sabrina Saddiqui, Sabrina@SiddiquiAdvisory.com (713-906-1363)