Shawna Lode is Manager of the Iowa Tourism Office at the Iowa Economic Development Authority where she is responsible for developing and implementing programs that support and promote Iowa’s tourism opportunities for economic growth.

A lifelong Iowan, Shawna grew up in Aurelia and earned her bachelor’s degree from Buena Vista University in Storm Lake. She received a Master’s Degree in Communication Leadership from Drake University in Des Moines.

Shawna began her career in tourism in 1996 when she became Director of the Burlington Area Convention and Tourism Bureau in Burlington, Iowa. In 1998 she joined the staff of the Iowa Tourism Office where she worked as Public Relations Manager. After seven years, she left the Tourism Office to serve as Communications Director for the Iowa Finance Authority, a position she held for five years. In September 2010 Shawna returned to the Iowa Tourism Office to assume the role of Manager.

Shawna enjoys exploring Iowa with her husband, James Myers, and their sons Paxton and Rowen.