Sandstorm Named Executive
Director
by Sharon Rolenc
The Brain Injury Association
of Minnesota Board of Directors voted unanimously to name Ardis
Sandstrom, MS, LICSW, CRC, as its new Executive Director, ending
an extensive national search. She succeeds Thomas C. Gode who previously
held the position for eleven years. Sandstrom is the third executive
director in the Association’s 21 year
history.
“It’s an exceptional privilege to have someone with
the hands-on experience and personal knowledge of our organization.
She’s prepared to step in with an immediate understanding of
how we operate,” said Russ Philstrom, board chair. The Association
has seen an explosion of growth in the past three years and the board
expressed a desire for continuity in leadership to assure the organ-ization’s
continued success.
For the past seven years, Sandstrom served as Associate Director
or deputy to the Executive Director. In that role, she developed
several programs that have served as national models for success
in the traumatic brain injury (TBI) field including Resource Facilitation
and Multicultural Outreach. She also introduced two fee-for-service
programs, the Education Department and waiver Case Management. Previous
to her tenure at the Association she served as Director of Residential
Programs at Mary T. Inc, Program Supervisor at Courage Center, and
Program Coordinator for Direct Connections TBI program in St. Cloud.
Sandstrom was recently appointed by Gov. Tim Pawlenty to the Minnesota
State Rehabilitation Council. She has spoken nationally on topics
related to brain injury.
A passionate advocate
for disability services, Sandstrom knows first hand what life is
like for persons with disabilities. An injury as a small child
severed part of all her fingers on both hands. “In
the grand scheme of things, the challenges I face with my disability
are fairly small. But some of the stories I could share about how
I was treated growing up are pretty horrific. What I experienced
opened my eyes, not only to the need for systemic change, but the
critical need for community awareness and understanding. From the
time I was very young, I knew I would have to do something to impact
change,” she said.
Celebrating over 20
years of service, The Brain Injury Association of Minnesota is
a non-profit organization dedicated to serving the 94,000 Minnesotans
who live with brain injury, their loved ones, and the professionals
who work with them. The mission of the Association is to enhance
the quality of life and bring the promise of a better tomorrow
for all people affected by brain injury. For more information about
The Brain Injury Association, call 1-800-669-6442, e-mail info@braininjurymn.org or visit the Web site: www.braininjurymn.org.
