MESD Board of Directors

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Statement on HB 2942 from Helen Ying, Committee Chair, MESD Board Equity Committee and Kristin Cornuelle, Chair, MESD Board of Directors

MESD believes in restorative justice and the ability of individuals to transform their lives.

We provide education for more than 2,000 justice-impacted youth in detention and correctional facilities. On a daily basis, we work with justice-impacted youth who may have committed crimes because they are experiencing addiction themselves or are seeking a path out of poverty. The consequences of their actions are long-lasting. After serving time and paying fines, youth’s family, friends and community often shun them. They also experience housing barriers, lack of access to jobs, fear, and ongoing stigma.

We believe that people who have been convicted of nonviolent crimes, and who have paid for those crimes, should not be kept from providing for their families. If they are the most qualified candidates for our jobs, their past actions should not keep them from positively contributing to our district and our community.

The bill introduced by Rep. Janelle Bynum will allow school districts to employ individuals with prior nonviolent criminal offenses. It will allow the Teacher Standards and Practices Commission and ODE to set internal policies and procedures for districts to follow in evaluating fitness for employment of individuals who have these types of convictions in their past. This approach serves the dual purpose of ensuring child safety while also acknowledging the ability of individuals to transform themselves and their community. We acknowledge and thank Rep. Bynum for introducing this important legislation.

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Jessica Arzate (2020-2021 Vice-Chair)
Position 4, Zone 4 - Term Ends 6/30/21
jarzate@mesd.k12.or.us
 
Jessica brings over a decade experience as an educator and cross-sector and systems collaborator. She is currently the Senior Director of Impact at Greater Than (formerly “I Have a Dream” Foundation of Oregon), an education nonprofit working in partnership with the Reynolds School District. As a member of the Leadership Team at Greater Than, she drives decisions and strategy for the organization’s Impact Model. In addition to her work at Greater Than, Jessica serves in leadership roles with the Women’s Foundation of Oregon as a Board Member, Grants Committee Chair, and previously as the Board Vice-Chair. Jessica lives in East Portland with her partner, enjoys the outdoors, long distance running, and absolutely loves playing at the park with her nephew Benny.

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Mary Botkin 
Position 3, Zone 2 - Term Ends 6/30/21
mbotkin@mesd.k12.or.us
 
Mary grew up in SE and NE Portland, attending Glencoe Grade School before moving to NE Portland, attending Vernon, and graduating from Jefferson High School in the mid 60’s. Mary studied labor law at the Pacific NW Labor College at Marylhurst and Labor Studies and History with Melvin Dubofsky at SUNY Binghamton. She is retired after working at Oregon AFSCME, a public employee union, for over 30 years. She spent most of these years working for and in the Oregon Legislature.  Her work primarily included passing the first pay equity laws, the MLK Holiday, and many years working on PERS Retirement, mental health, corrections and juvenile justice policies, budgeting, and reforms. Mary and her husband Mike married in 1970, are both Oregon Natives, and have one adult son who also lives in Portland.  

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Kristin Cornuelle (2020-2021 Chair)
Position 6, At Large - Term Ends 6/30/23
kcornuell@mesd.k12.or.us
 
Kristin is an intellectual property attorney at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP and maintains an active pro bono practice in the areas of trademark and copyright law, homelessness, housing, immigration and domestic violence. She received her Bachelor’s degree from Princeton University and her Juris Doctorate at UC Hastings. Kristin is a parent of two children in the Portland Public School system, a member of the Bridlemile Elementary School Foundation and Co-President of the Robert Gray Middle School PTA. She is committed to equity for all students, with a special focus on at-risk youth and youth with disabilities. Prior to her legal career, Kristin was an executive for a non-profit organization serving youth and adults with developmental disabilities, a manager of vocational rehabilitation services, and the Director of the Workforce Investment Board for San Mateo County.  Kristin lives in Southwest Portland with her husband, children and young Labrador.

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Katrina Doughty
Position 7, Zone 3 - Term Ends 6/30/23
kdoughty@mesd.k12.or.us
she/her

Katrina brings over a decade of experience as a health educator with a passion for reproductive justice and community organizing. She is currently the Maternal and Child Health Coordinator at 211info, a non-profit information and referral resource for all of Oregon and Southwest Washington. As a member of the Oregon Adolescent Health Alliance Board, she drives community collaboration and works hard to ensure that all Oregon youth have access to comprehensive health education and reproductive health services. In addition to her work at 211info and OAHA, Katrina serves in leadership roles with the Young Nonprofit Professional Network of Portland, Planned Parenthood of Columbia Willamette’s Young Supporters Board, and is an active volunteer for NARAL and NWAAF. Katrina lives in South-East Portland and enjoys the outdoors, baking, gardening and creating fun fundraisers.

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Susie Jones 
Position 1, Zone 5 - Term Ends 6/30/21
sjones@mesd.k12.or.us
 
Susie Jones served on the Mt. Hood Community College Board of Education from 2013 - 2017. She received both her BME and MM from University of Portland. Now retired, she was an instructor of music at MHCC for 12 years, and prior to her appointment at MHCC, she taught for 9 years in the North Clackamas School District and 8 years in the David Douglas School District. She has served numerous years as president of the Mt. Hood Jazz Festival, producing that event in 2008, 2009 and 2013. She also served on the writing team of NCCAS (National Coalition for Core Arts Standards), writing the next generation of national standards for the arts.

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Denyse Peterson
Position 5, Zone 1 - Term Ends 6/30/23
dpeterson@mesd.k12.or.us

Denyse O. Peterson was born and raised in Portland, Oregon and graduated from Jefferson High School. Her focus professionally has been on regional government and education. She worked in the 72nd and 73rd Oregon State Senate Legislation session for Senator Avel Gordly, mediating with various agencies to bring resolutions to the challenges of affordable housing, employment and food.  She also has 12 years of experience at Metro E-R Commission serving seven commissioners and the general manager. She served for six years as a Personal Family Counselor for Dignity Memorial, at Caldwell’s Funeral and Mortuary assisting families in “Planning ahead 4 All the Right Reasons”.  For the last 14 years, she has worked at Portland Community College and currently serves on the Executive Council for the college’s union, the A.F.T., and is the V.P. of Political Action, which affords her a meeting with an elected official each month.  Denyse has been an active volunteer with faith based and community organizations since she was a child. For 25 years, she has mentored homeless women helping them to transform their lives, liaising with DHS and the courts in working towards reunification with their children. Denyse has coordinated the Portland Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Breakfast with the Skanner News for more than 20 years.

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Helen Ying
Position 2, At Large - Term Ends 6/30/21
hying@mesd.k12.or.us
 
Helen’s professional career encompasses 30 years of experience as a mathematics teacher, high school counselor, and high school vice-principal. Currently, she serves as a hearings officer for a local school district.  In addition to her professional work, Helen has also been very active in the community.  She is currently serving on a myriad of boards and in leadership positions involved in education, health care, civil rights, environment, and social justice issues.  Her vision is to connect the dots for a better world. She is living that out through her mission to engage and empower people to take action in improving their communities.  Helen holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics and a Master’s degree in Education and Counseling from Portland State University. She is fluent in Chinese.  

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