‘Get on Board’ urges candidates to run for school, college boards

Today marks the official launch of OSBA’s Get on Board campaign, designed to ensure that Oregonians from all walks of life consider investing their time and energy by serving on local school boards. The campaign aims to see sitting board members offer their expertise for another term, and motivate community members – including persons of color – to take up the challenge of volunteer board work.

The May 2015 election saw the lowest number of candidates for Oregon school board seats in a decade, and nearly three-quarters of all candidates ran unopposed. The campaign is designed to combat those trends.

This new effort by OSBA comes ahead of the Feb. 4 date when the filing period opens for seats on the boards of local school districts, education service districts (ESDs) and community colleges. Candidates must file by March 16 to be eligible for the May 2017 ballot.

To help prospective candidates answer questions about the process and prepare them to become school board members if they are elected, OSBA Board Development offered two free webinars in February. Recordings are located below:

• February 9th - 6:30 p.m.



• February 15th - 12:00 p.m.

Other campaign resources can be found on a new website at www.getonboardoregon.org.

“We hope that this campaign will encourage Oregonians to become a voice for students and make a difference in the lives of Oregon’s young people,” said Jim Green, OSBA’s executive director.