Board of Education goes fishing for new members

Mt. Hood Community College District board of education is looking for community members to fill at least three open seats.

In all, the designated four-year terms of four board members – Robert Coen, Diane Noriega, Paul Capell, and Tod Sloan – are up this year.

Each must face the decision of whether or not they are going to run for another term, or time out this spring.

Board members will have from Feb. 7 to March 19 to formally file for re-election, in the May 19 election.

When Diane Noriega, the current board chairwoman, first ran for a position, there was another board turnover of four seats. Only one incumbent decided to run again, leaving four (experienced) members on the board, total.

According to Noriega, this was a difficult time, and something that many boards try to avoid, if they can stagger elections farther apart.

“Wow, this could be a big change. It’s worrisome,” she said, about the coming turnover.

“Continuity” is one reason Noriega said she plans to file for re-election. “Given that we are such a young board I felt we should at least have one board member step up for another term.”

Noriega also serves on the MHCC Foundation’s auction committee.. She has also served on many other boards, including the board of trustees for the Monterey College of Law in California.

The open seats in May cover Districts 2 and 5, and one of two at-large seats that cover the entire Mt. Hood voting district.

Tod Sloan, representative for District 2, was appointed to his position. He took over for Maggie Nelson at the beginning of the academic year (last summer) because Nelson moved out of her zone and was no longer eligible to serve. One reason he accepted the short-term assignment is that he knows the college well, having served on the school’s Foundation board for many years.

Sloan said it was understood when he took on the rest of Nelson’s term, it would only be temporary. He is retired and sits on the board of his church now. As Noriega joked, “his biggest priority is going fishing.”

Paul Capell joined the board in late 2012 when he was appointed to fill an at-large board seat, which does not have zone regulations. His day job is being the vice president of HDR Engineering and Architecture, in the Pacific Northwest region.

Capell has a strong background in public service, has been a longtime supporter of MHCC, and has been a Foundation board member since 2009.

Currently, Capell has not committed to seeking another term. He said personal matters have diverted his attention from the board.

“I had every intention of running again, (but) something personal has come up – nothing earth shattering – but some things that will potentially be taking up large amounts of my time for the next couple of years, preventing me from serving how I would like to,” he said.

Capell said he has enjoyed his term. “It’s a really positive experience; it’s a wonderful board,” he said.

Robert Coen, currently board member for District 5, was first elected in 2011 and will not seek re-election, he said.

Coen said he makes his “day-to-day living” as the CEO and board chairman of the BCI group, and is involved with various other boards of directors.

According to Coen, he is definitely leaning towards not running for another term: “not because of personal commitments, but because of time commitments.” Recently his company has made an investment in a company called Ruby+Solberg telecommunications, he explained. Between his many board seats and his children, Coen said, “I got a full load, but it’s a fun load.”

Coen said his replacement will see plenty of action. “There are a lot of big decisions ahead for the community college,” he said.