Kimberly Reynolds, Commissioner

Kimberly Reynolds was appointed as the agency’s Aging Services Commissioner effective September 29, 2025.

Reynolds brings more than 30 years of experience in aging, behavioral health, and public service at the state, federal, higher education, and nonprofit levels. She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in gerontology as well as a master’s in public administration.

“Kim’s strong combination of expertise and vision with experience in both aging and behavioral health, paired with proven leadership in state and federal service, makes her exceptionally well-suited to lead this commission,” Secretary Howard said. “She understands the challenges older Kansans face and is committed to advancing policies and programs that improve their quality of life.”

Her career began as a service provider at a community mental health center in Oklahoma, working with older adults with serious mental illness, before moving into dementia care leadership within a nursing facility. In Kansas, Reynolds held key positions with the former Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services, overseeing aging, housing, and homeless programs, and later supervising licensing of Medicaid HCBS waiver and behavioral health service providers. She has also directed aging and behavioral health research and training initiatives at the University of Kansas.

Reynolds previously served at KDADS as the Single State Authority for Mental Health and Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment. Most recently, she worked at the federal level with the Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), where she was an Assistant Regional Director, then went on to serve as National Subject Matter Expert for mental health and aging/disability, and Coordinator of the Center for Mental Health Services training and technical assistance programs.

What We Do

Aging Services administers a variety of community-based programs for the aging population through contracts and grants of state and federal funds. The programs administered include Older Americans Act, congregate and home-delivered meals, caregiver programs, in-home services, Senior Care Act services, and the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE).

Aging Services also oversees and implements grants that assist individuals who are aging or have a disability under Senior Health Insurance Counseling for Kansas (SHICK), Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP), and Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (MIPPA). The SHICK program assists individuals with Medicare-related questions. The SMP program educates the community about reporting Medicare/Medicaid and healthcare fraud and abuse, and how to identify and report scams. The MIPPA program allocates funding for increased outreach to Medicare beneficiaries, the bulk of which is targeted at coordinating, educating, and enrolling low-income Medicare beneficiaries and the free Medicare Preventive services.