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OSBA members approve voting position for Oregon School Board Members of Color Caucus
Wednesday, December 19, 2018
OSBA member boards approved giving the Oregon School Board Members of Color Caucus an OSBA Board voting position.
Voting ended Friday for the OSBA Board of Directors and two resolutions. Resolution 1, which sets OSBA’s policies and priorities, passed with a 94 percent yes vote, and resolution 2, which changed the caucus's nonvoting seat to a voting seat, passed with a 76 percent yes vote.
Caucus President Bill Graupp, North Marion SD, said the resolution’s passage tells school board members of color that their input into board policies is valued and it gives a dedicated voice to their concerns.
Although the OSBA Board has members of color, their first obligation is to vote according to the interests of their regions, Graupp said, whereas the caucus seat can be focused on the values and goals of communities of color.
Graupp said the caucus would be working toward helping all boards create an equity policy. The caucus’s goals include promoting improved education for students of color and increasing the presence of people of color in education leadership.
Incoming OSBA President Tass Morrison said it makes a difference when students of color see adults who look like them in positions of significance.
“I’m very pleased that the majority of school boards in Oregon recognized the need for the Oregon School Board Members of Color Caucus to elevate exposure of people of color at the governance level,” she said.
The OSBA policies and priorities resolution will guide OSBA’s 2019-20 legislative work. Revenue reform and increased education funding will be OSBA’s most important advocacy work for students in the coming year, Morrison said.
In the three competitive races for the OSBA Board, incumbent Craig Prewitt, Phoenix-Talent SD, won position 5 (Southern); Jackie Crook, South Coast ESD, won position 9 (Douglas/South Coast); and incumbent Michelle Vo, Corbett SD, won position 17 (Multnomah). All new and returning board members take their positions Jan. 1.
New officers for the OSBA Board will also take their positions Jan. 1: President Morrison, North Santiam SD; President-elect Kevin Cassidy, Baker SD; Vice President Scott Rogers, Athena-Weston SD; Secretary-Treasurer Maureen Wolf, Tigard-Tualatin SD; and Past President LeeAnn Larsen, Beaverton SD.
OSBA received applications for the open Yamhill/Polk OSBA Board position and the open Washington and Central positions on the Legislative Policy Committee. The OSBA Board will consider appointments at its Feb. 8 meeting.
OSBA will be taking applications from within the Clackamas region until Jan. 4 for its recently vacated Legislative Policy Committee position. Contact Executive Assistant Jane Leonhardt at jleonhardt@osba.org for an application.
- Jake Arnold, OSBA
jarnold@osba.org
jarnold@osba.org