Robert J. Funk, Executive Director and CEO
Robert J. Funk, J.D. was appointed Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of Paraquad, Inc. in 2002. Under Funk’s leadership, Paraquad has seen significant growth and development including the restructuring the development department, restructuring the advocacy, peer and independent living services program, making significant management changes, rebuilding the Personal Assistant Service Program and the expansion of consumer-controlled services.
As Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer, Funk is responsible for the implementation of Board goals and the management of company operations. Priorities include carrying out a broad range of program development, administrative, budget and financial management and policy development duties.
Funk has a long history as a national advocate for people with disabilities. Prior to Paraquad, Funk served as president and CEO of EKA Health and Mobility Systems Inc., in Maryland. Before that, he was chief of staff for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in Washington, D.C. (1989-1993) where he was responsible for the day-to-day operations of the nation’s leading employment discrimination law enforcement agency. Before 1989 he held several other Washington-based positions including: policy consultant to the White House where he played a significant role in the development and passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA); special assistant to the director, President’s Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities; founder and executive director, Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund.
Born in Ohio, Funk received his B.A. degree from the University of Michigan’s School of Literature. Following graduation Funk attended the University of California at Davis where he received his J.D. from the Martin Luther King, Jr. School of Law.
Funk currently serves on the advisory board of the Missouri Model Spinal Cord Injury System and as a member of the Missouri Independent Living Centers and the Consumer Advisory Board of the School of Occupational Therapy, Washington University.