NCSL Staff Directory

As director of facilities, Tim Lucero heads the Building Operations and Central Services departments. He came to NCSL with more than eight years’ experience working with UBS Telecommunications and Mobil Oil Corp. At UBS, he received training and certifications that allowed him to install and repair digital and analog telephone systems. At Mobil Oil, he worked in the oil and gas and mining/coal divisions. While at Mobil, he coordinated the central services operations and worked with a team from Northern Telecommunication to design, install and manage a new phone system for its 375 staff members. He eventually became the last person employed with the mining/coal division and was directly responsible for liquidating all of its property before his departure.

As the public affairs senior manager, Uyen Vong supports the NCSL Public Affairs team, including oversight of media relations, social media and other digital platforms. Prior to joining NCSL, Vong worked in state and local government and most recently served as the community affairs specialist for the governor of Hawaii. Vong is dedicated to elevating the voice of the people by strengthening the legislative institution in the nation’s capitols. 

As program coordinator, Viviana Angulo supports NCSL's Environment, Energy & Transportation Program. Angulo comes to NCSL with experience in event and meeting management for convention centers, hotels and private companies. She earned her bachelor’s degree from the Metropolitan State University of Denver. 

Wade Fickler directs NCSL’s Children and Families Program, which covers child welfare, child support, early care and education, economic security, family law, housing, homelessness and hunger. His previous experience includes policy and communications positions with the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, the Children’s Institute and the City Club of Portland. As a Peace Corps volunteer in Ukraine, Fickler helped foster civic engagement and voter participation in the fledgling post-Soviet democracy.

Walker Stevens works as a policy analyst in the Children & Families Program at NCSL. Stevens comes back to NCSL for the third time with policy and legal experience in all three branches of Colorado state government. Stevens received a Juris Doctor from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law in 2022.

As director of Elections and Redistricting, Wendy Underhill leads a team of policy analysts focusing on all things related to voting, election administration and politics for NCSL. Underhill has been with the organization for 11 years, broadening her portfolio from an initial focus on elections to include campaign finance, redistricting, the census, ballot measures and election outcomes. She is sought after for her expertise by major media outlets, including The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. 

As a policy associate in the Employment, Labor and Retirement Program, Zaakary Barnes researches state policies on collective bargaining, unemployment insurance and occupational licensing. Barnes comes to NCSL with experience working on state and federal labor issues, having previously served as a labor policy legislative assistant in the U.S. House of Representatives. He studied political science at Iowa State University before earning a master’s degree in communication at Drake University.