Executive Vice President (EVP)
Michele Marden
The past two years I’ve served as Executive Vice President (EVP) and prior to that dedicated ten years as Treasurer.
I believe our Power is our Collective Voice.
Over the years, I have been instrumental in maintaining and building our local. As Treasurer, I led the work to restructure dues that resulted in more financial stability. And, I actively participated in developing policies and roles that are now helping us stand stronger together to fight for the issues that matter for students and ourselves.
Of course, one person does not make such changes alone – and the work is not done.
I entered the role of EVP with a clear understanding of our union’s structural challenges and potential. My goals as EVP were to be a bridge between committees and out to members, update our staffing, and bring in missing perspectives when needed.
As EVP:
- When strike seemed imminent, synthesized information between FFAP’s committees and affiliates, credit unions, and other locals, so that we would be ready to provide strike loans for members.
- Took on committee work when needed. Example: Organized and wrote my first grievance, successfully returning control of D2L’s Navigation Bar to faculty!
- Fill-in-gaps example: Started attending CTE FDC meetings to learn more about needs (possible contract support)
- Co-developed new staffing roles.
- Bonus: My active work in virtually every committee has helped with the presidential transition this past year.
FFAP has known and unknown challenges ahead:
- Transition to new staff roles and responsibilities
- Steward Network still in its infancy
- More policy and infrastructure development is needed
- National uncertainty for higher education’s stability
With your vote, I would be honored to continue building our local, supporting our new president, taking on additional work as needed, and navigating the national landscape – all to support our Collective Voice.
Check out: Marden4EVP.com
Michelle DuBarry
I joined the FFAP Executive Council in 2015 because I was frustrated by the lack of communication from union leaders. Back then, bargaining happened behind closed doors, and updates were few and far between. It was unclear how decisions were made.
As VP for Communications (a position I created in 2016), I have worked hard to transform FFAP’s communication from a one-way, top-down system to one where members are invited into decision-making, and information is transparently communicated in a variety of formats by a variety of people. This has meant soliciting insight and feedback from members, collaborating on everything from emails to bargaining proposals, supporting each other across departments and employee classes, and most importantly, open bargaining! It’s imperfect and a work-in-progress, but I’m very proud of how far we have come.
During this time, so many new FFAP leaders have emerged and transformed our union in exciting ways. We are more organized, more collaborative, and more inclusive than any time since I started at PCC. It’s no surprise that this shift has led to large COLAs (32% over the last 6 years!) and transformational contract wins for FFAP members. (I wrote about some of them for Labor Notes.)
My vision for serving as EVP is to 1) Represent APs in union governance. An AP has not served as President or EVP since 2018. 2) Continue to build power with a focus on winning big for all of our members in 2025 and 2027 negotiations. (Our working conditions are student learning conditions!)
I have worked as a grants officer for PCC since 2009. In addition to serving as VP for Communications, I served on negotiations teams in 2019, 2021, 2023, and 2025. I would be honored to earn your vote!
Treasurer
Kathleen Janicki (unopposed)
I am Kathleen Janicki and I would like your vote for me for Treasurer of PCCFFAP.
I have been a member of FFAP since I was hired in January 2007. I have been volunteering on the FFAP Finance Committee for about 6 years.
In 2022, I was appointed to the Oversight & Bylaws-Compliance Officer position on the Executive Council of FFAP. The combined Team from the Finance Committee and the Oversight & Bylaws Committee, our Team developed and implemented much needed policies including Conflict of Interest, Fraud, and Whistleblower. We continue to develop policies. Together, we work to assess the effectiveness of the Executive Council.
In 2023, I was elected Treasurer of FFAP.
Synopsis of my proficiencies:
- 2 years’ experience as the FFAP Treasurer.
- 8 years’ experience on the FFAP Finance Committee.
- 1 year experience as the FFAP Oversight & Bylaws Officer.
- Over 20 years’ experience teaching Accounting, Budgeting & Financial Analysis at various community colleges and universities.
- Over 25 years’ experience working in Corporations; including over 20 years’ experience in management of non-profit and for-profit companies; work included Accounting, Finance, IT and Human Resources.
- Over 12 years’ experience volunteering as Treasurer of various non-profit corporations.
As your Treasurer, I have overseen the income, expenses, and budgeting process ensuring transparency so that our Union is financially stable for the future. Our Team put together the plans in preparation for the possible strike.
I welcome your participation in our Union. Let me know what we can do to support you. Our Union can use your expertise, together we are stronger.
Please Vote!
VP for Grievance/Contract Administration, FT faculty
Emiliano Vega
Serving as your Full Time Faculty Grievance Officer has been a great experience that I would like to continue. With ~5 years of experience, I feel like I finally know how everything works (ha!). I approach my work in supporting faculty, filing grievances and assisting with organizing with dedication, confidence and commitment.
I prioritize defending our contract but also building and maintaining strong relationships with the faculty I help and support. Grievances are time consuming and often personal. I am thankful that many people have trusted me to do that process with them and I am thankful for the successes we have had in defending and strengthening our contract.
Our federation continues to grow its member driven power and structure. Along with grievance work and supporting members I look forward to:
- Helping to empower members with more knowledge and training on their rights.
- Support department level organizing and actions where it is most needed.
- Recruiting more members
- Continuing to be a trustworthy Federation leader that you can bring questions and concerns to and receive honest, thoughtful feedback.
Maureen Wright
Vote Maureen Wright for VP of Grievance / Contract Administration (FT Faculty) – Bold Advocacy. Unique Expertise. Persistence. Real Results.
- I’ve filed multiple Unfair Labor Practice complaints with the Employment Relations Board to uphold our contractual rights under the law. Through these efforts, I’ve gained first-hand experience navigating complex legal processes and successfully advocating for faculty.
Vote for the best qualified candidate to promote your interests, needs, concerns, rights, and opportunities. Effective advocacy takes vision, persistence, and strategy. Results cannot be achieved by passivity.
- During the 2024 Oregon legislative short session, as an AFT-Oregon Legislative Fellow, I lobbied for higher education institutions on your behalf.
Grievances and Contract Enforcement Experience
My experience with Grievances and Contract Enforcement includes:
- In 2023, I reported Management’s abuses of its duty to act with transparency. Consequently, Management received a compliance order with a penalty and sanction for violating the Oregon Public Records Law.
- When Management is a “no show” at grievance meetings, that behavior runs afoul of our contract and the law. The Employment Relations Board will decide the College’s fate.
26+ Years of PCC Employment
I’m a full-time faculty in Business Administration and Computer Information Systems, who teaches STEM, tech prep, and collegiate transfer courses. Earlier, I served as a casual employee, an academic professional, and a part-time instructor.
Managerial & Supervisory Qualifications
I’ve devoted my academic and professional career to public service. At the City of Portland, I supervised union-represented public employees. At the U.S. Department of Labor, I promoted employer-compliance with federal equal employment opportunity laws. My background in the public sector taught me how to interpret and create enforceable contracts.
Knowledge is power. Transparency nurtures accountability.
I will be honored to serve as your VP of Grievance / Contract Administration. Vote Maureen Wright – your strong, determined, and experienced advocate.
VP for Grievance/Contract Administration, PT faculty
Kris Fink (unopposed)
For the last two years, I’ve had the honor of serving as the Grievance Officer for Part-Time Faculty. I am passionate about improving working conditions and job security for part-time faculty whether that’s at the bargaining table, through the grievance procedure, supporting faculty during investigatory meetings, or just meeting one-on-one with PT faculty across the college to discuss their concerns. In the last round of bargaining, we saw major gains for PT faculty around pay equity and class assignment, but there is more to do. Enforcing the new language, creating a pathway for PT faculty to move into FT positions at the College, and pushing for true equity across instructional and non-instructional work is imperative. I’m excited to continue this work! Your vote is appreciated and your voice is heard.
Oversight and Bylaws Officer
Alex Vuilleumier (unopposed)
I’m running for my second term as Oversight and Bylaws Officer in order to continue our work maintaining the transparency of our organization and remaining in compliance with our Constitution, Bylaws, Executive Council Policy Handbook, and numerous other documents. This committee’s work involves tracking, discussing, writing, updating, presenting, voting on, and compiling paperwork that makes our union stronger, more stable, and more accountable. I hope to improve on this work over the next two years, meeting the immense and troubling challenges that face us all. I am open to new ideas, listen to everyone, and consider all options in order to do what our membership believes is best. As a union representative, I work for you!
About me:
- For sixteen years, I’ve been a devoted member of our union, teaching Writing at Rock Creek Campus.
- In my two years as chair of the Oversight and Bylaws Committee, we have improved our union’s record keeping and internal communications, edited numerous documents for consistency, worked with union lawyers to keep our organization fair and equitable, established strike authorization language, codified the creation of several new committees, and simplified our monthly and annual reporting processes.
- During the last bargaining cycle, I drafted numerous articles of contract language with the Part-Time Bargaining Advisory Council that improved working conditions for our members.
- Over the past four years, I have also worked on the Communications Committee, Organizing Committee, Contract Action Team, Bargaining Advisory Council, Member Organizing Institute, as well as working as a Vice-President at Large for the American Federation of Teachers-Oregon.
My name is Alex, and I would very much appreciate your vote.
Lead Steward, PT Faculty
Erik Johnsen (unopposed)
Greetings good colleagues,
My name is Erik Johnsen and I am running for re-election to continue being your Lead Steward for PT Faculty. I have been active in our union for about four years now, starting as a co-chair of the PT Bargaining Council (where we saw many of our ideas get enshrined in the contract), before joining the Executive Council and being named one of the members of our last Bargaining Team.
I have found working with the Federation to be incredibly rewarding as it has allowed me to meet and collaborate with so many wonderful people who work here at PCC. I have been very active in our organizing efforts including board actions, petitions, being a Contract Action Team member, planning socials/rallies and more. I am also on our Communications Committee where I help to write and edit all written communications from the Federation to our members. I think I have been an effective champion for our collective goals and I hope to continue in that work.
Our Federation has become more energized, democratic, transparent and effective over these past five years or so, and while I can only take a tiny portion of the credit for that, I would be honored to be chosen again to represent my fellow union members and continue working with the inspiring, passionate and committed members of our leadership team.
Lead Steward, Academic Professionals
Phyllis Petteys (unopposed)
To all of you in PCC FFAP,
I have been honored to serve as a Lead Steward for APs for the last few months, providing support to my AP co-workers while being introduced to the essential world of organizing and action. It’s been quite a learning curve for me! Although I have been a member of PCC FFAP for the 12 years I have been here, I now truly see the sincere and important efforts of our amazing union leaders, and the strength of our membership. Together we can ensure that our college reflects our commitment to the education of our students and respects our need for a fulfilling and safe work environment. Our union is the hope I hold for the success of our institution (and for higher education) as we fight for shared governance and democratic practices to collectively advocate for the best solutions for our entire community.
I am an Accessibility Specialist for Accessible Ed and Disability Resources, an AP position. Before coming to PCC, I was the Coordinator of the Assistive Technology Center at Portland State for 17 years and have worked, in one way or another, in the disability community for close to 40 years (yikes). I mention that, because it is important to me that the union centers accessibility and values disability as diversity, and fights for the rights of all our colleagues. I am heartened to be surrounded by a caring and feisty group of people, and would enjoy continuing in the Lead Steward role.
Lead Steward, CTE
Jacob Richman (unopposed)
My name is Jacob Richman, I am a part-time faculty member in the Multimedia program, and our incumbent Lead Steward for CTE. The Career Technical Education program is the most diverse unit at our college: arts workers, healthcare workers, trades workers, technicians, social workers, engineers, and many others teach and mentor our students in this unique pathway. As your Lead Steward since Summer 2024, I have met, listened to, gotten to know, and organized our workers with such wonderfully unique skills and experiences. Yet we are all united around our passion for teaching. Along with advocating for the needs of our people, I have co-facilitated a joint committee of CTE union members and PCC Admin reps to tackle one of our biggest challenges: hiring and retaining faculty in trades where workers take a major pay cut to teach here. We are currently developing short- and long-term strategies to make sure that we can hire and retain the best faculty with the deepest knowledge and experience in our fields without putting undue burden on our current faculty nor our students. We plan to implement some of our recommended changes in this contract cycle, with an eye towards a long-term solution to this perennial problem. No more failed faculty searches and hyper-extended educators. Our working conditions determine our students’ learning conditions. I pledge to continue my work, building CTE Solidarity and Sustainability, and to show results for my fellow educators in our unit. I appreciate your vote.
VP for Political and Legislative Action
No candidate