About Iris

Monroe County Commissioner, Iris F. Kiesling, was born in the Netherlands and came to Bloomington more than 40 years ago as a newlywed wife of a professor of economics, the late Herbert J. Kiesling. Iris has two children: Scott Fabius Kiesling and Stephanie Ann Kiesling, and four grandchildren.

Iris has lived in many other communities, including Boston, Santa Monica, Washington, DC, and York, England. While rearing her son and daughter, she volunteered at church, League of Women Voters, child care board, and Newcomers, as well as other groups. Always concerned for children and the environment, she continued to be involved with the League of Women Voters, being elected president in 1981-1983.

In the mid 1980’s, she coordinated the first Congressional Debate for Indiana’s 8th and 9th District for the League of Women Voters. As important issues of study came before the League, both local and state, Iris became interested in local government, local government finance, cable television, international affairs, the election process, and education. She ran unsuccessfully for the Monroe County Community School Corporation Board.

All this led to her being asked to run for the Bloomington City Council. She served on the city council for nine years, serving as its president in 1990 and 1995 until elected to the Monroe County Board of Commissioners in 1996. She is in her third term as Commissioner; and she has served both as President and Vice President.

“The Lifetime Achievement” award was very deservingly bestowed upon Iris at the 2007 Women’s History Month Luncheon. In September of 2007, Iris was awarded a Leadership Award by the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce. The Indiana Association of County Commissioners’ most distinguished annual award: “Outstanding Team Effort for a Board of Commissioners” was presented to the Monroe County Board of Commissioners for the collaborative effort to create the Indiana Center for the Life Sciences. Because of her endeavors, Monroe County was recently designated a “Preserve America Community.” The most recent award given to the Board of Commissioners was the “Public Improvement Award” presented by Bloomington Downtown, Inc.

Iris attended Katharine Gibbs School in Montclair, NJ, and Boston, MA, graduating with AD. Iris also attended Harvard University, Indiana University and Syracuse University.