As Director of the Nebraska Division of Travel and Tourism, Kathy McKillip oversees the division’s activities including the marketing of Nebraska attractions and events, developing and managing a budget of state and federal revenue sources, monitoring national trends in travel and tourism, preparing legislation related to tourism, providing a cohesive approach to the division’s vision and participating in strategic policy planning.

McKillip, a fifth-generation Nebraskan, has traveled the country and the state extensively working with rural communities and site attractions, and cultivating regional growth and metro-area development.

McKillip has spent more than 17 years in the field of community capacity building and has an extensive background in planning, economic development, community and rural development, public participation, population trends, marketing initiatives and community connections as they relate to demographic and cultural shifts.

McKillip attended Nebraska City High School, and earned a bachelor’s degree from Nebraska Wesleyan University, a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and a master’s in science organizational management with an economic emphasis from Peru State College. She is an active volunteer within the community of Lincoln, and serves as a board member on the Lincoln City Library Board of Trustees.

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , Media/Public Relations Coordinator
(402) 471-3797
Shannon Peterson is the media and public relations coordinator for the Nebraska Division of Travel and Tourism. She is responsible for the division’s social media outlets, generating news coverage of Nebraska’s tourism industry and maintaining effective relationships with the media.

Shannon served as the web manager at Midland Lutheran College in Fremont and spent 10 years as an online editor for the Omaha World-Herald. She graduated with a journalism degree from Creighton University.

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , Group Travel Coordinator & Eastern Region Development Consultant
(402) 471-3744
Paula is the Group Travel Coordinator for the Tourism Division promoting Nebraska as a destination to groups, national and international visitors and tour operators. Paula serves as Tourism Development Consultant overseeing Eastern Nebraska tourism.

Paula has spent most of her life working in the tourism arena with her family, overseeing properties and event planning on the East Coast. Paula completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and holds a master’s degree in clinical psychology from the University of Colorado Boulder.

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , Development Consultant
(402) 471-3795

Micheal Collins is a tourism development consultant/planner for the Nebraska Tourism Division. He coordinates the community and tourism attraction assessment programs, oversees the Nebraska Vacation Guide program and plans the annual Nebraska Travel Conference. He also oversees writing and updating of the Nebraska Tourism Industry Development Plan, Nebraska Group Tour Travel Planner and Tourism Marketing and Development Resources Guide.

Heather Hogue is responsible for maintaining information in the Division's database and web site. Heather coordinates information from all lodging properties, event planners, and tourism entities that provide information to the Division in order to provide that information to the traveling public. She also manages the email requests for tourism publications, oversees the NEBTOUR listserv, and supervises the fulfillment operation for the Nebraska Division of Tourism working as the liaison between our call center and fulfillment operations center.

Before joining the Division of Tourism, Heather worked as a customer service representative at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida and as a travel agent.

Karen Kollars joined the DED's Travel and Tourism Division as the Agri-Tourism Development Consultant and Western Region Tourism Representative. She works closely with tourism entities in western Nebraska and helps encourage more rural residents to take advantage of the trend towards travelers wanting to take vacations that involve immersing themselves in ranching or farming experiences.

Karen is a graduate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Organizational Management. She formerly worked for the Cheyenne County Chamber of Commerce as the Executive Director and handled tourism and main street responsibilities. Karen is a native of Nebraska. She has her office in Sidney.

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , Ecotourism & Central Region Development Consultant
(402) 471-7755
Tom Tabor joined the Nebraska Department of Travel & Tourism staff in 2004 as the first Ecotourism Development Consultant for the State of Nebraska. A native Nebraskan, Tom’s previous work experience includes the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission where he worked as a Horticulturist/Forester in the Parks Division for 14 years. After leaving Game and Parks, he went to work for Information Technology, Inc. for one year as a Computer Programmer before moving on to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Office of Sponsored Programs, where he worked as a Grants Coordinator.

Tom is a Certified Forestry Technician from the University of Minnesota, North Central School and Experiment Station in Grand Rapids, MN ('78). He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics with a minor in Biology from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln ('97) and has completed coursework towards a Masters degree in Community and Regional Planning with and emphasis in Environmental Planning. Tom is also a past board member of the Great Plains Trails Network.

His hobbies are biking, kayaking, hiking, running, and camping. Tom is excited to be in a conservation-oriented career and enjoys promoting and developing eco/nature-based tourism opportunities throughout the state. Tom also promotes a variety of outdoor activities such as wildlife watching, camping, canoeing/kayaking, trails, and hiking and biking experiences for the state of Nebraska.

Twyla Witt, Regional Tourism Development Consultant

(308) 645-9566
Twyla Witt is the Division’s Byways Consultant and Tourism Development Consultant for the Northwestern and North Central regions of Nebraska. She works closely with the nine state designated scenic byways and their grass-root organizations. Twyla enjoys working directly with the people along the byways and in her region; tourism development consulting, including agri-tourism diversification ideas, marketing, and promotion. She says that promoting Nebraska as a place to visit, work and play is very satisfying, because she truly believes that Nebraska is the best place to visit, work and play. She has worked for the Division for more than 15 years, most recently as the administrator of the Tourism Marketing & Advantage Grants and the Fulfillment Coordinator.

Twyla has more than 30 years of tourism experience including former owner/manager of lodging properties in Nebraska, North Dakota and Wyoming, as a travel agent and as an account representative for Nebraska Logos selling the logo signage along I-80 in Nebraska.

Twyla is a native Nebraskan raised on a ranch in the Sandhills of North Central Nebraska. She now works from an office in Thedford.