Management Team
Elva James, Executive Director, CCAP
Elva has been working to end poverty and improve the lives of the poor her entire working life. Elva has been Executive Director of Area IV since 2013, and prior to that was the Director of the Benton County Department of Child Services and before that was a Deputy Director for Area IV. At Area IV, she provides strategic direction for all of its program areas and provides financial oversight for Area IV’s budget and compliance program. Elva is a graduate of Berea College with a Bachelor of Arts in Social Work and Sociology. She is the President of Area IV Development’s Board of Directors, a separate 501(c)(3) affiliate of Area IV. She is also on the Board of the Indiana Community Action Association, the Board of Indiana Area Agencies on Aging, and the Indiana Area Agency Alliance.
Mary Paulsen, Community Action Programs Director, CCAP
Mary began her career in the classroom teaching Kindergarten through middle school aged children for approximately 12 years. She then worked with preschool aged children in the Head Start program as first a teacher and then an Education and Disabilities Manager for the next 14 years. Mary started at Area IV Agency over five years ago and has been in her role as Deputy Director of Community Action Programs for almost three years. Mary is a graduate of Ball State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Education and holds a Master of Science degree in Education from Purdue University. As Deputy Director of Community Action Programs, she provides direction and oversight for a variety of programs such as Energy Assistance, Weatherization, Transportation and Housing Choice Vouchers. Mary is also the director of the child care and preschool programs operating in White County.
Kat Foglesong, Aging Services Director
Kat began her career in 2000 at Alzheimer’s Lakeway Program and Services in the East Tennessee area. She found her calling for assisting the aged/disabled and their caregivers and gained experience as the center’s Family Service Coordinator and Dementia Support Group Facilitator. She attended Tusculum College and completed her Bachelor of Science Degree in Organizational Management. Kat moved to Lafayette and worked for a local Durable Medical Equipment Company where she assisted clients with options and education on medical equipment. Kat joined Area IV’s Information and Referral Department in 2014 and became the Deputy Director of the Aging Department in 2018. As the Deputy Director, she provides direction and oversight for Information, Referral and Assessment Specialists along with Care Managers for our 8-county service area. Kat knows in her heart her path and previous experience led her to this agency and is grateful to work alongside Area IV Agency on Aging and Community Action Program professionals in the forefront of Social Services and Humanities.
Shannon Davis, Director of Human Resources, CCAP, SHRM-CP
Shannon began working for Area IV Agency on Aging and Community Action Programs, Inc. in September 2007 in the Aging Department and was promoted to her current role in 2016. She graduated from Saint Mary’s College with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology in 2005. Shannon became a Certified Community Action Professional (CCAP) in 2018 and a Society of Human Resource Management Certified Profession (SHRM-CP) in January of 2020. In her role as Human Resources Director, Shannon is responsible for supporting Senior Management and Area IV Agency staff by providing HR related services across multiple areas.
Shelby Allen, Quality Improvement and Strategies Director, CCAP
Shelby has over ten years of experience working for Area IV Agency on Aging and Community Action Programs, Inc., starting as a Care Manager and was promoted to her current role in 2016. She graduated from Ball State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology in 2008. In her role as the QIS Director, Shelby is responsible for the analysis and reporting of customer trends, satisfaction with services, and the unduplicated count of individuals served each year. She also researches and develops the agency’s Strategic Plan and Area Plan, assists with grant writing, manages the agency’s social media accounts and website, and develops new programs.
Area IV Agency Board of Directors
The Board of Directors is responsible for ensuring that the mission of Area IV Agency on Aging and Community Action Programs is accomplished through approval of agency policies; through agreements with federal, state, and local agencies and with private funding organizations or individuals; and that the Agency is fiscally sound and the mission sustainable. In order to ensure that the populations served by the Agency are fairly represented, the Board membership includes public officials, or their representatives, representatives of low-income persons and representatives of the private sector from all of the counties that Area IV serves. View the Area IV Agency Governing Board Bylaws.
Board Officers
Julia Leahy, President
Chris Overman, Vice President
Dianne Williams, Secretary
Government Representatives
Sana Booker, Tippecanoe County
Cathy Gross, White County
Cindy Murray, Tippecanoe County
Chris Overman, Clinton County
Anne Painter, Tippecanoe County
Joretta Tinsman, Carroll County
Private Sector Representatives
Linda Akers, Warren County
Chris Cohee, Montgomery County
Kathy Elmore, Tippecanoe County
Sherry Fischer, Benton County
Cindy Mason, Tippecanoe County
David Rosenthal, Tippecanoe County
Resident Elected Representatives
Michael Cruz, Tippecanoe County
Julia Leahy, Carroll County
Adam Meyer, Tippecanoe County
Jami Pratt, Clinton County
Yvone Renz, Tippecanoe County
Dianne Williams, White County
Area IV Agency Executive Committee
The Board of Directors is responsible for ensuring that the Agency is fiscally sound and the mission sustainable. In order to ensure that the populations served by the Agency are fairly represented, the Executive Committee includes public officials, or their representatives, representatives of low-income persons and representatives of the private sector from the counties that Area IV serves. View the Area IV Agency Governing Board Bylaws.
Executive Committee Members
Linda Akers, Warren County
Kathy Elmore, Tippecanoe County
Julia Leahy, Carroll County
Cindy Mason, Tippecanoe County
Chris Overman, Clinton County
Yvone Renz, Tippecanoe County
Dianne Williams, White County
Area IV Development Board of Directors
Board Officers
Elva James, President
David Lahr, Vice President
Dawn Layton, Secretary
David Rosenthal, Treasurer
Board Members
Earl Cox, Carroll County
Julie Gutwein, White County
Sherry Fischer, Benton County
Anne Painter, Tippecanoe County
Joe Redmond, Tippecanoe County
Eric Ross, Carroll County
Gale Spry, White County