Kathryn Atkinson Overberg

Katie has a unique and practical background counseling business and higher education organizations on employment and personnel matters, discrimination and harassment, Title IX and other compliance concerns.

As an employment attorney, Katie brings experience as an advisor, litigator, and in-house counsel, which allows her to work with clients to prevent legal problems through substantive trainings and identifying risks while also providing thoughtful responses to concerns that may arise in employee performance, discipline, termination, accommodations, reductions in force, and leave matters. For her higher education clients, Katie’s roles as in-house employment counsel and Title IX coordinator also allow her to advise on policies and procedures that not only comply with current laws but also make sense practically for the campus. She regularly advises colleges on faculty, staff and student discipline matters, trainings, and reorganizations.

Through these roles, Katie has also developed significant experience advising and conducting internal investigations into workplace and education matters as well as drafting and reviewing employee handbooks and university policies. Katie was also an adjunct Employment Law instructor at Drake University Law School.

• Conducted workplace investigations for several public school districts in Iowa as well as large companies in Polk and Story counties.
• Supported private college through policy development, adoption, and implementation in the faculty handbook.
• Advised company through reduction in force and separation of employment.
• Assist Iowa company with sexual harassment investigation and represent company at the Iowa Civil Rights Commission.
• Represented company in mediation of discrimination and retaliation claims.
• Provided regular advice to human resources staff and managers regarding employee performance and concerns including Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), performance management and complaint resolution.
• Advised and created new employee disability accommodation process and related forms and communication.
• Supported large public university for over a decade as the in-house employment attorney, advising on employment actions and formal employee complaint processes; advised on faculty-conduct cases and grievance processes; proposed and revised university-wide policies; and responded to complaints with state and federal agencies such as the Iowa Civil Rights Commission, the Equal Employment Opportunity, the Iowa Department of Labor, and the Office for Civil Rights as well as the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
• Created the first free-standing Title IX office at a private university, including developing policies and procedures, conducting campus-wide education of faculty, staff, and students, and managing the complaint process including working with both parties and their representatives.

Education

• University of Iowa College of Law, J.D., with high distinction
• Washington University in St. Louis, B.A.

Admissions

• Iowa, 1997

Professional Activities

• Iowa State Bar Association Board of Governors, 2022-present
• Iowa State Bar Association, Centralized Diversity Task Force, 2021-2022
• Polk County Bar Association Board of Directors, 2021-present
• Co-Chair of Polk County Bar Association Law Day Committee, 2024-present
• National Association for Law Placement, 2019-2023
• National Association of College and University Attorneys, 2003-2013; 2015-2023
• Iowa Law Review, Managing Editor, 1996-1997

Community

• Des Moines Arts Festival / ARTSwork Board of Directors, 2026
• Iowa Rush Soccer Club, Board of Directors, 2012-2018; Volunteer Youth Coach, 2005–2013
• Girls on the Run of Central Iowa, 2014
• Blank Children’s Hospital, Child Life Services, 2013-2014
• Julie Foudy Sports Leadership Academy, Coach/Leadership Staff, 2014