New OSBA officers continue focus on revenue reform
OSBA’s new officers took office Monday.
LeeAnn Larsen automatically became president from her 2017 president-elect position, and Betty Reynolds automatically became past president. The new president-elect, vice president and secretary-treasurer were elected in mid-September, but didn’t officially take office until Jan. 1.
All positions are for one year and include serving on the OSBA Legislative Policy Committee.
President LeeAnn Larsen has served on the Beaverton School Board since 2009 and the OSBA Board of Directors since 2014. Larsen is the general manager for SuiteAmerica. The president chairs OSBA Board of Directors and Executive Committee meetings, appoints committees and represents OSBA at state and national conferences and conventions. The president is an ex-officio member of all OSBA committees.
“I am looking forward to really focusing on revenue reform,” Larsen said. “I am hoping to move the dial on getting us consistent and adequate funding for our K-12 system.” Larsen also said she wants to support training for school boards so they can be effective education advocates in their communities.
President-elect Tass Morrison has served on the North Santiam School Board since 2008 and the OSBA board since 2012. Morrison is a retired educator who also serves on the Stayton/Sublimity Chamber of Commerce. The president-elect chairs the OSBA Policy Committee and assumes the duties of the president if the president can’t serve. The president-elect oversees association elections and resolutions processes as well as serving on OSBA Executive and Budget committees and attending events on OSBA’s behalf.
Morrison said she wants to continue OSBA’s positive momentum working with school board members.
“Reaching out to school board members is critical to changing anything that is going on in our schools in Oregon,” Morrison said.
Vice President Kevin Cassidy has served on the Baker School Board since 2013 and the OSBA board since 2016. He joined the Legislative Policy Committee in 2014. Cassidy is a contracting officer for the Oregon Department of Transportation. The vice president chairs the Legislative Policy Committee and will assume the duties of the president-elect if the president-elect is unable to serve. The vice president attends meetings and conferences on OSBA’s behalf and serves on the OSBA Executive, Finance and Budget committees.
As chair of the Legislative Policy Committee, Cassidy will be working on establishing OSBA’s legislative agenda for 2019-20.
“A subset of that is helping our new LPC members understand the value of the work they do,” Cassidy said. LPC members have a responsibility to speak for the state as a whole and not just their local school board, Cassidy said.
Secretary-treasurer Maureen Wolf has served on the Tigard-Tualatin School Board since 2009 and the OSBA board since 2014. Wolf, a former program manager with the Oregon Business Council, is a commissioner for the Teacher Standards and Practices Commission. The secretary-treasurer is responsible for the minutes of meetings, official OSBA correspondence and accounting for OSBA funds. The secretary-treasurer serves on the Finance, Budget and Executive committees as well as representing OSBA at meetings and conferences.
Wolf said she looks forward to working with OSBA’s new director of operations and finance, Jon Greeley.
“I think OSBA's challenge is the state's challenge: stable funding and appropriate cost containment,” Wolf said.
Past President Betty Reynolds has served on the West Linn-Wilsonville School Board since 2011 and the OSBA board since 2014. Reynolds, a retired state executive most recently with the Oregon Real Estate Agency, is treasurer for the National School Boards Action Center. The past president provides counsel for the new officers. The past president serves on the Executive and Budget committees and as an ex-officio member of the Oregon Community College Association board.
Reynolds is encouraged by the collaboration among OSBA executives, education advocates, business leaders and state officials.
“I hope we can keep the momentum going on revenue reform and cost containment,” she said. “It’s so important to kids.”
- Jake Arnold, OSBA
jarnold@osba.org