Vicki Kramer was appointed Director of the Nebraska Department of Transportation (NDOT) by Governor Jim Pillen in 2022. She led NDOT’s Communications and Public Policy Division from 2016 – 2020, and prior to her appointment, she was Chief of Staff for Kiewit Infrastructure’s Market and Strategies Group. She also served as a staff member in the offices of U.S. Senators Chuck Hagel, Mike Johanns and Deb Fischer before leaving the Senate in 2014 to serve as senior policy advisor to the Nebraska National Guard’s Adjutant General.
With a background in public policy, innovative financing and integrated project delivery, her leadership has driven innovation for NDOT, including the state’s entry into public financing and the launch of an Infrastructure Hub that supports local public agencies in securing federal grants for key municipal infrastructure improvements. She has been a vocal proponent of increased driver accountability and safe systems approaches, furthering NDOT’s Buckle Up Phone Down initiative, emphasizing youth motor safety education, and prioritizing work zone safety measures that protect both workers and drivers. Her governmental policy experience and understanding of Nebraska’s unicameral place her in a unique position to support the state’s lawmakers in passing and maintaining informed, efficient and effective transportation policy. Key pieces of legislation introduced during her tenure have included LB 706, which granted the Nebraska Highway Commission bonding authority for the first time in the state’s history, and LB 1335, which re-evaluated the balance between infrastructure expansion and environmental stewardship.
She is committed to forming and maintaining local and federal partnerships and maintains an active role in the country’s larger transportation conversations. She serves on the AASHTO-AGC-ARBA Joint Committee, the AASHTO State DOT CEO Leadership Forum, the AASHTO CEO Working Group for Reauthorization Framework, the Transportation Vulnerability and Resilience Expert Task Group for the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, the ARTBA P3 Division, and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Civil Engineering Industry Advisory Board. She also chairs the AASHTO Committee on Transportation System Security and Resilience and the Governance Committee of the I-80 Corridor Coalition, and serves as the State Infrastructure Coordinator and Transportation Advisor for the National Governor’s Association.
Vicki served in the Nebraska Army National Guard for 14 years. She holds a Master of Public Administration from the University of Nebraska at Omaha, and two bachelor’s degrees from the University of Nebraska at Kearney. She and her husband currently live in Ashland with their two sons.