Board Members

Commercial Real Estate Agent

For this local business champion, every business opportunity is a new,

exciting experience. Peggy considers herself lucky to work with the people who want to invest in our community and take risks to open their businesses, whether they’re well-established companies or startups. Peggy is an Iowa City native who’s spent over 20 years in commercial

real estate. Over 30 years in commercial development, and commercial

construction. She specializes in commercial construction sales with an

emphasis on general construction, design build, turn-key, build-to-suit,

and construction management. After graduating from the University of

Iowa and Kirkwood Community College, Peggy got her start in real

estate working with a development company, and then with a

commercial construction company. She currently manages between 12

to 30 million dollars in projects at one time.

 Optometrist | Past ICCSD Board of Directors

Brian Kirschling earned his bachelor's degree in Biology from the University of Iowa and doctorate from the Illinois College of Optometry. Kirschling was appointed clinical faculty at The University of Iowa Department of Ophthalmology and has been a VA clinician for over 20 years.  He is currently providing patient care at McDonald Optical in Iowa City. He is a Past President of the Iowa Optometric Association and was recently appointed by the Governor to the Iowa Board of Optometry within the Iowa Dept of Public Health. He serves on the City High Alumni Association Board of Directors and is the Trustee Chair for Iowa City Elks Lodge 590. Brian was elected to serve on the Board of Directors for Iowa City Community Schools from 2013-2017 where he gained an appreciation for trades education and grew to understand the threat it faces due to budgetary constraints. He believes that the trades truly are the foundation of our society and we need to work hard to ensure that the trades remain strong within our schools. He lives in Iowa City with his wife and their two young adult children. He enjoys long distance running, playing live music, and Hawkeye athletics.

Culture & Talent Manager  

 SHRM-SCP certified professional with 20 + years of experience in Human Resources and Economic and Workforce Development. Currently leading culture, recruiting, and HR initiatives for ProCircular, Inc, a growing 6-year-old Cyber Security firm committed to trust and building great relationships internally and externally in Iowa and the midwest. In past positions, I focused on developing and implementing workforce strategies and solutions to meet the needs of employers in the Cedar Rapids/Iowa City area as the Director of Workforce Solutions for Iowa's Creative Corridor Development Corp, a joint venture between the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance and Iowa City Area Development Group. As someone involved with workforce challenges and solutions for over two decades, I was impressed with the mission of FFTT. It is clear that we are filling a gap that benefits both students and employers. 

Sales & Admin Director

 Shawn is passionate about business growth through strategic execution of marketing and relationship building. Leadership executive with over 20 years experience leading successful sales & marketing teams. Collaborative and strategic thinker with experience in customer experience, sales, process improvement, client relationship and retention. Shawn is affiliated with the following media outlets: KZIA, Inc., Z102.9, KGYM, X107.5, SmartFM & CI Digital Group and Townsquare Media.  

Iowa State Representative

  After teaching for 33 years in the Iowa City schools, Mary retired from teaching in June of 2009. Mary has been very active in her community. She helped organize the first girls’ softball league in Iowa City and served on its board of directors. 

She has been a member of the Iowa City Parks and Recreation Commission, the Iowa City Riverfront Commission, and was president of the Iowa City Education Association. 

​In 1994, Mary was elected to the Iowa House where she has been an advocate for women, children and families. Mary served on the State Reading Recovery Advisory Board and Executive Committee. Mary was appointed by Governor Vilsack to the State Council on Continuous Improvement of Educational Excellence. Mary served as an ex-officio board member of the Iowa Public Employees Retirement System and Early Childhood Iowa.