May 2025 Update: Dr. Bankston currently serves as chair of Council on Aging’s board of trustees.
Council on Aging (COA) is overseen by a board of trustees. The board establishes rules for COA’s operation and directs the organization’s affairs in keeping with Council on Aging’s mission to enhance lives by assisting people to remain independent through a range of quality services. Board members live and work in COA’s five-county service area and bring a wealth of professional and personal experience to COA and its leadership team.
Dr. Karen Jones Bankston joined COA’s board of trustees in 2020 representing Hamilton County. She currently serves as the board’s vice chair and on the SOAR Committee. Dr. Bankston is a Professor Emerita; a leadership consultant; a retired hospital executive; and former Associate Dean for Clinical Practice, Partnership and Community Engagement of the College of Nursing at the University of Cincinnati.
Dr. Bankston is President/CEO of KDB and Associates Consulting Services, LLC, a company she founded that provides organizations with support for culture change, strategic visioning, performance improvement and leadership development. An Urban League of Greater Southwestern Ohio 2024 Glorifying the Lions honoree and 2017 Cincinnati Enquirer/Greater Cincinnati Foundation Woman of the Year, Dr. Bankston currently serves as Board Chair for Best Point Education and Behavioral Health, and is a member of the City Link Board and Hamilton County Hospital Commission.
What interested you in serving on Council on Aging’s Board of Trustees?
I’m interested in developing strategies that foster positive experiences for older adults in our community and to ensuring that living at home is an option as we age. COA has a mission that aligns with that, most importantly by supporting older adults to remain in homes that provide them comfort.
Looking ahead, what do you see as the biggest challenge(s) facing older adults in our community?
Economic challenges and inflation negatively impacting older adults’ lives. Specifically, property taxes and the increased cost of medication and food, can become barriers to activities of daily living.
What excites you most about COA’s future and how do you see yourself contributing to it?
COA has established itself as a trusted partner in the community – and there’s a strong drive to be innovative! I believe with continued growth and development among the team, we will be able to support the changing needs of older adults and the aging network. I look forward to using my skills, expertise and relationships from the healthcare and education sector to support these efforts to make life better for older adults.
Thinking about your time on COA’s board, what COA moment are you most proud of?
I am very proud of how COA was able to pivot and provide necessary services to older adults in our community during the COVID-19 pandemic. So many of them were at risk of becoming even more vulnerable and we were able to intervene and minimize the impact.
I’m also proud of COA’s innovative partnership with the University of Cincinnati’s Live Well Collaborative which led to the development of the AddnAide app.
Which COA value speaks most to you and why?
I have several because so many of COA’s values are connected and build upon each other to help the organization achieve its mission.
- Teamwork plays an important role in delivering effective and efficient services.
- Integrity is required in order to develop the culture that supports teamwork and subsequently ensures that the services are meeting the needs.
- Service is what drives all our values.
- Having Business Acumen is required to measure and understand the aforementioned values.
What’s the most important lesson you learned from an older adult in your life?
Two things: 1) Keep your mind above (on God) and not on things on this earth. 2) You must do the best you can at whatever you do, no matter the job. Never think you are too good to do the work.
Tell us about one of your role models or someone/thing that inspires you.
My mother and her sister were my inspiration. They lived two entirely different lives (my mom a homemaker, my aunt a teacher) but each in her own way demonstrated strengths that became a part of the way I function. They modeled for me positivity, honesty and compassion in all their interactions.
What’s the last book you read?
The Black Angels by Maria Smilios