October 02, 2018

Wyden Selects Oregonian Bob Joondeph for Social Security Advisory Board

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today announced that his selection of Oregonian Bob Joondeph has been appointed to the Social Security Advisory Board (SSAB).

Joondeph is currently the executive director of Disability Rights Oregon, an advocacy organization for those with disabilities that has been a pioneer for the nation.

“I’m proud that one of Oregon’s best, Bob Joondeph, can now show the rest of the nation how to fight for dignity and fair treatment for all Americans,” Wyden said. “Bob’s rich history working to improve the lives of Oregonians with disabilities will be instrumental as he begins advising policymakers on how to make Social Security work better for seniors and people with disabilities. Social Security is a fundamental guarantee of earned benefits for workers who have paid into the program out of every paycheck – Oregonians should take pride that Bob will be working to ensure that guarantee is preserved and strengthened.”

As the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, Wyden helps select members of the a bipartisan, seven-member board that advises the president, Congress and Social Security commissioner on Social Security policy. He will serve for a term of six years.

"I'm honored that Senator Wyden has chosen me to be a voice for the millions of Americans who rely upon Social Security," Joondeph said.

For more than 25 years, Joondeph has served as Executive Director of Disability Rights Oregon leading a team of lawyers and advocates who have helped Oregonians with disabilities keep their jobs, their homes, and their access to health care and education.

Under his leadership, Disability Rights Oregon, along with outside counsel, filed the first class action lawsuit in the nation that challenged segregated employment in sheltered workshops. As a result, thousands of Oregonians with intellectual and developmental disabilities who work in sheltered workshops are now able to pursue gainful employment and achieve greater independence and self-sufficiency that comes with it.

In addition to leading the organization’s state level public policy advocacy in Salem, Joondeph serves on the Oregon Advisory Board on Traumatic Brain Injury, the Oregon Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Coalition, and the Oregon Council on Developmental Disabilities.

A graduate of Case Western Reserve Law School and Brown University, Joondeph has lived in Oregon since 1976. He has four grown children and three grandchildren.