The National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) has formally confirmed the structural appointment of five new incoming board members, effective this July, including the Director of Responsible Gaming for premier operator BetMGM, Richard Taylor Jr.
The national non-profit organization stated that the leadership expansion is designed to scale its public awareness, clinical advocacy, and harm-reduction strategies across the United States.
Three-Year Terms Align Corporate and Affiliate Perspectives
The incoming class is headlined by Richard Taylor, Jr., who guides responsible gaming and strict marketing compliance modeling for BetMGM, the market-leading joint-venture operator owned by Entain and MGM Resorts International. Taylor, Jr., who directly oversees the operator’s consumer-facing GameSense protection architecture, has been appointed within the NCPG’s established Organizational board seat structure.
He brings extensive localized regulatory experience to the council, continuing his active service on Nevada’s Advisory Committee on Problem Gambling alongside a seat on the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling board.
The broader governance update blends multiple institutional viewpoints across separate seats:
- Affiliate Seat Deployment: Jamie Glick, the Executive Director of the Problem Gambling Coalition of Colorado, joins the national board to coordinate state-level affiliate responses.
- Individual Seat Allocations: Tana Russell, Deputy Director of the Evergreen Council on Problem Gambling, and Jody Bechtold, CEO of The Better Institute, have both transitioned onto individual seats. All four new directors are slated to serve full three-year terms commencing on July 1, 2026.
- Re-Elections and Agency Terms: Vena Schexnayder, founder of the Arkansas Problem Gambling Council, has been re-elected for a secondary term, while Anne Rogers, problem gambling prevention coordinator for the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, has accepted a one-year term.
The council noted that maintaining balanced member categories, Affiliates, Individuals, and Organizations, ensures the operational integration of diverse consumer and regulatory perspectives. The board expansion arrives as the NCPG interfaces directly with federal lawmakers regarding prediction markets and the legislative introduction of the POINTS Act to combat gambling harm nationwide.
A Pivotal Time for Harm Reduction
Derek Longmeier, President of the NCPG Board, emphasized that the integration of tier-one operational leaders arrives at a vital juncture for the performance marketing sector:
“Our board members bring an extraordinary level of passion, experience and commitment to NCPG’s mission at a pivotal time for the field. Their diverse perspectives and leadership will help strengthen our efforts to reduce gambling-related harm and expand support for individuals, families and communities affected by problem gambling nationwide.”
