| | |  | | Chair, Commissioner, voting member | June 30, 2023 | |
Executive director--now serving as senior advisor--of the National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA), a policy and advocacy organization for Indian children and their families. Mr. Cross has 40 years of experience in child welfare; he is an author and national expert on child welfare issues, and served on the faculty of Portland State University School of Social Work for fifteen years.
| 1 | | terrycross | | | |  | | Commissioner, voting member | June 30, 2021 | |
Professor in the School of Language, Culture and Society and Coordinator of the College Student Services Administration program and the undergraduate Social Justice Minor at Oregon State University (OSU). Dr. Roper previously served as Vice Provost for Student Affairs at OSU from 1995-2014. He previously served six years as a Commissioner with the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities.
| 2 | | larryroper | | | |  | | Commissioner, voting member, also member of Funding and Achievement Subcommittee | June 30, 2025 | | Dr. Fajardo is Senior Director of Technology at ATI Specialty Alloys & Components, a manufacturer of specialty materials products in Millersburg, Oregon. Dr. Fajardo has served in numerous leadership and research roles in technology development, and has been serving on the Board of Governors for the Oregon Manufacturing Innovation Center (OMIC) since its launch in 2017.
| 9 | | arnelfajardo | | | |  | | Vice Chair, Commissioner, voting member | June 30, 2023 | | Editor and civic leader who served as editor of The Oregonian newspaper from 1993-2010. She has served as president of the American Society of Newspaper Editors, chair of the board of the Pulitzer Prizes, chairman of the international Committee to Protect Journalists. In 2010 and 2011, Rowe was the Knight Fellow at Harvard University's Kennedy School. Rowe currently is on the board of the Oregon Nature Conservancy and is a trustee of Willamette University. She previously served on the Board of Visitors of James Madison University in Virginia. | 12 | | vacant2 | | | |  | | Executive Director | | Ben Cannon |
Executive
Director of the Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Commission since 2013. In this position, Cannon oversees state funding allocations, policy-setting, and coordination for Oregon's higher education system, including community colleges and public universities. Cannon is a former teacher, state representative and education policy advisor to the Governor. Elected three times to the Oregon House of Representatives (2006-2011), he chaired House committees with jurisdiction over environment, energy, and water policy. From 2003 to 2011, he taught humanities at a middle school near Portland. He earned his BA from Washington University, St. Louis, and attended Oxford University, England, on a Rhodes Scholarship, earning graduate degrees in comparative and international education and philosophy, politics, and economics.
| 16 | Ben Cannon | bencannon | | | |  | | Commissioner, university faculty non-voting member | June 30, 2021 | | Division Director of Undergraduate Studies and Associate Professor of Criminology & Criminal Justice at Southern Oregon University. In addition to her service for the HECC, Dr. Ayers-Preboski served eight years on the Oregon Criminal Justice Commission, and serves on the Board of Directors for both Jackson County Community Works and the Public Safety Coordinating Council. She is also a Texas certified teacher.
| 4 | | leeayerspreboski | | | |  | | Commissioner, voting member, also voting member of the Funding and Achievement Subcommittee | June 30, 2023 | | Principal and Founder of V Consulting & Associates Inc. in Roseburg, Oregon, focusing much of her consulting practice on leadership and organization development in rural areas. Vanessa Becker recently served two terms as a trustee for Umpqua Community College, five of the eight years as chair of the board, and her service to the community college system was recognized with the Howard Cherry Award in 2016. Ms. Becker is an American Leadership Forum fellow, and was also recognized by Harvard in 2017 as a co-presenter and alumni of the Harvard Kennedy School Crisis Leadership in Higher Education program. She has been appointed and served on several nonprofit and government based advisory boards, largely focused on health and human services.
| 5 | | vanessabecker | | | |  | | Commissioner, voting member, also member of Funding and Achievement Subcommittee | June 30, 2025 | | Dr. Greg Hamann is President Emeritus of Linn Benton Community College (LBCC). Dr. Hamann led LBCC in its commitment to student success and completion from 2010 through 2020, and has advocated for community colleges and their impact at the state and national level. Under his leadership, LBCC implemented Guided Pathways which is now used as a model for other institutions, expanded programs and facilities, championed community collaboration, deepened university partnerships, and launched equity and affordability initiatives. Dr. Hamann previously served as president at Clatsop Community College, and has served on numerous task forces, boards, and leadership positions.
| 11 | | greghamann | | | |  | | Commissioner, voting member, also Chair, Funding and Achievement Subcommittee | June 30, 2020 | |
President of the Oregon Business Council. Member of the Oregon Community Foundation Board. Former Member and Chair of the Oregon Board of Education.
| 15 | | duncanwyse | | | |  | | Commissioner, community college faculty non-voting member, also member of Funding and Achievement Subcommittee | June 30, 2021 | |
Mathematics faculty member at Portland Community College. PCC's faculty union president. Member of the PERS deferred compensation advisory board and the Oregon community college essential budget level committee.
| 8 | | frankgoulard | | | |  | | Commissioner, college/university staff non-voting member | June 30, 2021 | |
Academic Advisor and Career Coach at Clackamas Community College (CCC), where he also serves as Association President of the Classified Association of CCC. Mr. Farrera is a graduate of the Education Leadership & Policy in Postsecondary Adult Continuing Education (PACE) program at Portland State University, and has served in the United States Marine Corps.
| 6 | | enriquefarrera | | | |  | | Commissioner, voting member | June 30, 2023 | | Co-founder of Sonder Studio, a venture studio that designs products and businesses using human-machine systems which leverage the best of artificial and human intelligence. Speaker, facilitator, researcher and writer on AI ethics and human-centered design. Contributor at Quartz. Entrepreneur and technology executive.
| 14 | | helenedwards | |  | |  | | Commissioner, voting member | June 30, 2025 | | Ricardo Lujan-Valerio is director of advocacy for Latino Network, and an immigration, education, and election policy advocate. He previously served as legislative director for the Oregon Student Association, policy associate for the ACLU of Oregon advocating for Title IX protections in higher education, and as student senator and associate justice with the Associated Students of Southern Oregon University. At OSA, he he worked with student leaders across the state to draft The Student Voice and Transparency Act (HB 4141 - 2018). Lujan-Valerio also serves as board member of Causa, Oregon’s immigrant rights organization and Vice Chair of City of Portland’s Open and Accountable Elections Commission. He was born in Nezahualcoyotl, Mexico, and graduated from Southern Oregon University with a BS in Business and a certificate in nonprofit management.
| 15 | | RicardLujanValerio | | | | | | Commission, non voting member, community college student | June 30, 2021 | | Rossy Valdovinos Torres is a community college student.
| 17 | | RossyValdovinosTorres |
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