Kent Sovern, former president of the New Iowa Group and executive director of the Iowa Parks Foundation, has been named the new state director for AARP Iowa. Sovern has served more than 30 years in government relations, employment and workforce policy and education roles. Most recently, he developed the Iowa Parks Foundation, which was established in 2008. Previously, Sovern was executive director of the Des Moines Higher Education Collaborative. He also served as senior vice president of the government and international relations with the Greater Des Moines Partnership and as director of public policy for the League of Iowa Muncipalities. As AARP Iowa state director, Sovern will direct a staff of four employees and represent more than 375,000 members in Iowa. Sovern succeeds Bruce Koeppl, who was promoted to AARP Midwest regional vice president for state operations.