Vice President Candidate June Sine

June Sine has been a member of the East Valley (Spokane) School Board for nearly 15 years. She has served as Board President, Vice President, Legislative Representative and member of several committees. Sine has served on the WSSDA Board of Directors, where she was chair of the Finance Subcommittee, and is a 1999 graduate of Leadership WSSDA. Other WSSDA service includes Resolutions Committee, Annual Conference Planning Committee, Health and Nutrition Task Force, and Federal Relations Network. She represents WSSDA on the OSPI Facilities Advisory Board. Sine currently chairs the Spokane Regional Health District School Advisory Committee and has served as member and president of the Girl Scouts Inland Empire Board.

Candidate Statement:

I am pleased to put my name forward for the position of WSSDA Vice President. There is no better opportunity than now for me to pursue a leadership position with an organization that has been so valuable to me as a school board member.

Since I was elected to the East Valley School Board in 1991, I have turned to the membership and staff of WSSDA for the skills and information I need to fulfill my role as a school director. I have participated in WSSDA activities and value the experiences and skills I have learned working with other public education leaders. Our organization is comprised of members who are as diverse as the education communities we serve, and I feel I could be an effective leader of WSSDA as Vice President.

Participating in WSSDA Annual Conferences, Legislative Assemblies, Legislative Conferences and Federal Relations Network activities has given me the resources to be an effective board member. Being a member of the Resolutions Committee for two terms gave me a better understanding of our organization. As a graduate of the WSSDA Leadership Class of 1999, I have been able to use the knowledge and skills learned in many capacities on my local board and with WSSDA. For six years I served on the WSSDA Board of Directors, and during that time, I was a member of the Finance Subcommittee, Executive Director Search Committee and Task Force on Committees, and participated in strategic planning. These experiences gave me a better understanding of WSSDA, its history, organizational structure and purpose. I have had many opportunities to represent WSSDA on a local, regional, state and federal level.

In addition to the experience on my local board and the WSSDA Board, I have served on other boards. I served the Spokane County School Directors Association as member-at-large, Vice President and President. Currently, I am on the Spokane Regional Health District School Advisory Committee and chair the committee. I am on the OSPI School Facilities Advisory Board and its executive committee, which is currently transitioning to the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC). For more than 15 years, I served in several positions on the Girl Scouts Inland Empire Council Board of Directors, including more than five years as President. My knowledge and understanding of governance and management issues and the importance of communication with all stakeholders would be an asset to WSSDA.

My vision for WSSDA is to continue providing school directors the services that will allow them to be effective leaders in their local districts. The needs of board members are as varied as the demographics of the district. I believe in the mission of "leadership, advocacy and services to support public school directors’ efforts to improve student learning through quality governance of schools." I especially support the goal under professional development. Our membership needs access to the many services that will assist them in making decisions on the local level.

We must continue our advocacy efforts with our patrons and policymakers. For 13 years I have been an FRN member, the past three serving as chairperson. We continue to advocate for changes in No Child Left Behind and support increases in funding for programs that are so important for our children to compete in this global society. I am encouraged by the work of the Washington Learns Steering Committee. When the final report is concluded, school directors will need to be proactive in working with our legislators to make much needed changes in public education. These are exciting times to be school board members. Working together we can surely make a difference.

I would appreciate your support for Vice President.