FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

National Issues Forums Institute welcomes three new members to Board of Directors

The National Issues Forums Institute (NIFI) is pleased to announce the election of three new members to its Board of Directors: Kenny McGuane, Michael Steinback, and Timothy J. Shaffer. Together, they bring decades of experience in community leadership, civic engagement, communications, deliberative democracy, and public service that will help strengthen NIFI’s mission of building a more participatory, deliberative democracy.

McGuane brings more than two decades of communications and digital strategy experience, including 15 years supporting NIFI’s digital communications and helping share its mission with audiences across the country. Steinback is a longtime community leader and executive director of Detroit CARES, where he has dedicated his career to mentoring, community organizing, and strengthening civic life, especially among young people. Shaffer is a nationally recognized scholar and practitioner of civil discourse whose work helps institutions and communities build the skills and relationships needed for a healthy democracy.

Their appointments come at an exciting moment for NIFI as the organization expands its extensive programming, including increasing K-12 resources, developing key issue guides, and launching its nationwide “What’s Next, America?” initiative, which is helping communities across the country come together to talk, decide, and act on the issues that matter most as the nation approaches its 250th anniversary.

“Kenny, Michael, and Timothy bring a remarkable blend of expertise and genuine commitment to community engagement that will help NIFI deepen our impact and broaden our reach,” said Hollie Cost, NIFI’s board chair. “Their passion for connection and thoughtful leadership will be tremendously valuable as we continue to foster dialogue and strengthen democratic practices. It is truly an honor to have such highly regarded professionals as our newest board members.”

Kenny McGuane

Kenny McGuane is an independent digital communications strategist with more than two decades of experience helping organizations connect with their audiences. Since 2011, he has partnered with the Kettering Foundation on its digital and social media efforts, helping expand the Foundation’s reach and advance its mission through innovative online communications. Prior to his election to the National Issues Forums Institute Board of Directors, Kenny spent 15 years supporting NIFI’s digital communications strategy, helping strengthen its public presence and promote its work in deliberative democracy.

Kenny has also spent more than two decades in the musical instrument industry, leading digital marketing and communications for Traveler Guitar and helping grow the world’s leading travel guitar brand. His broader experience in the music industry includes music criticism for the publications FILTER and Under the Radar, where he covered new releases and live performances, reflecting a lifelong passion for music.

A veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Kenny has served honorably in the United States Air Force Reserve for 18 years and continues to oversee education and training programs at March Air Reserve Base, California. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Music from the University of Redlands and a Master of Arts in Humanities from California State University, Dominguez Hills.

Kenny lives in Palm Desert, California, with his wife and two children. Outside of his professional and military service, he enjoys high-fidelity audio, collecting vinyl records, and teaching indoor cycling classes.

Michael Steinback

Michael Steinback is executive director of Detroit CARES, an affiliate of the National CARES Mentoring Movement that was founded in 2006 in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Steinback has been with Detroit CARES since 2013, previously serving as a program administrator, trainer, coach, and mentor. He was also a founding member of Oakland Bay Area CARES.

Steinback’s career has expanded internationally, including through community organizing training and deliberative dialogue work across the U.S. and in Nairobi, Kenya. He’s served on several national boards centering youth, mental health, and public policy.

Steinback is also the Director of Enterprise Risk Management for the Julian C. Madison Building complex, a historic landmark and one of the few Black-owned and operated office buildings in downtown Detroit. He has a bachelor’s degree in economics from Santa Clara University and has held positions in risk management, economic development, small business consulting, and commercial bank and community lending for several financial firms in California.

Timothy J. Shaffer

Timothy J. Shaffer serves as the inaugural Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Chair of Civil Discourse and director of the SNF Ithaca Initiative at the University of Delaware. He is also a senior advisor with the National Institute for Civil Discourse at the University of Arizona.

A scholar of civil discourse and deliberative democracy,  Shaffer serves as the associate editor of the Journal of Deliberative Democracy, as an expert with the Varieties of Democracy research project, and as a co-director guiding the work of the Deliberative Pedagogy Lab, an international project centering how deliberation can transform higher education approaches and environments.

His work focuses on the role of civic professionals in institutional settings such as local government, higher education, and non-governmental organizations in relationship with diverse communities.