Laura Vegas Appointed To CQL’s Board of Directors
CQL | The Council on Quality and Leadership is honored to announce that Laura Vegas has been appointed to CQL’s Board of Directors. Vegas is the Director of National Core Indicators (NCI) for the National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities Services (NASDDDS), where she oversees and coordinates the day-to-day leadership of NCI, along with heading efforts involving the Supporting Families Community of Practice and Business Acumen.
“We’re extremely excited and grateful that Laura will be joining our Board of Directors,” says Mary Kay Rizzolo, President & CEO of CQL. “She brings with her not only a depth of knowledge about the field as a whole, but also a very intimate understanding of CQL’s tools, services, and philosophies.”
Vegas has more than 27 years of experience working in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) in various roles at provider organizations, governmental agencies, managed care, and more. In her role as Assistant Commissioner for the Tennessee Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (DIDD), Vegas lead efforts to help DIDD become the first state system to achieve CQL’s Person-Centered Excellence Network Accreditation. She also previously served as a Quality Enhancement Specialist for CQL, conducting activities connected to CQL Accreditation.
“Laura has a diverse background in different areas of human services, and we’re very lucky to have her on our Board of Directors,” says Jennifer Becher, CQL Board Chairperson. “She has had roles involving the local, state, and national perspectives, which will be a great asset for CQL.”
Prior to joining NASDDDS, Vegas worked for BlueCross/BlueShield of Tennessee as the Director of Employment and Community First CHOICES and Select Community, Tennessee’s new Managed Long Term Services and Supports HCBS program for people with I/DD. As stated earlier, she also worked for the Tennessee Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities for more than 17 years. Vegas began her career working for a private, nonprofit community based provider as a program coordinator. While working there, she was part of a team that lead the effort to close the sheltered workshop and connect people to their community through person-centered planning and practices and witnessed the positive change in people’s lives who were affected by the transition.