Inside Washington County with Rob Solomon

Our guest this week is Tualatin city councilor Bridget Brooks.

Bridget Brooks was elected in November 2018, and is serving her first term.  Bridget is the co-founder of Brooks Appraisal Services and has worked as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker; she has a Master’s Degree in Social Work from Wayne State University.  She is concerned bout climate change.

Climate change is overwhelming. Today we are going to take a good look at Councilor Brooks’ program - the Tualatin Sustainability Network. And, we will explore what we humans can do to battle issues related to climate change in our own communities.

This week- we have one of our favorite encore shows from 2020. Rob talks with Leticia Aguilar, Chicas Youth Development Program Manager for Adelente Mujeres. This program is primarily focused on the needs of Latinas in Washington County. Leticia will share with us how Adelente Mujeres works in general and how it’s work has been affected by COVID 19. We will also discuss the Chicas youth program.

Schools are reopening. Some are opening fully, some are part time and are using a hybrid approach. Pandemics impact systems, and, our County’s educational system is not immune.This week we look at just what has been happening in our Washington County schools, and what we might expect as the future unfolds.

Our guests are Kris Damiano who serves as Social Emotional Learning Coordinator for

Beaverton School District and Christopher Keller, who teaches Language Arts and Speech & Communication at Liberty High School

Parks, recreation, library services are important to our community. This week, we look at those services, gain an understanding of how our guests have managed their way through the pandemic to this point, and what the future holds.

 

Our guests today will help us. We have Doug Menke with us. Doug was appointed general manager of the Tualatin Hills Park & Recreation District in November 2006. He has enjoyed more than 30 years of public service at THPRD since joining the district in 1984.

We also have Hillary Ostlund with us today.

Hillary is library Director of Library Services for Hillsboro.

Also from Washington County Cooperative Library Services (WCCLS ) we have Lisa Tattersall who serves as

Manager for the system.

     

This week, we have the opportunity to get to know our County’s Chief Executive Officer Tanya Ange.

Ms.Ange became Washington County administrator, overseeing all county staff and operations on Aug. 24, 2020. We explore county issues, leadership issues, and consider what it’s like to move and start a new job in the midst of a pandemic.

Inside Washington County · Inside Washington County With Tanya Ange

In Washington County we have cities and a large areas of unincorporated land. The Cedar Mill area makes up a large portion of the unincorporated part of our county, and no one knows Cedar Mill better than this week’s guest, Virginia Bruce. This is an encore presentation originally taped last fall over the Zoom platform.

Virginia is a community activist who manages the Cedar Mill Historical Society, manages CPO1 in the community Participation Organization system, and publishes a monthly news publication, the Cedar Mill News.

Our conversation focuses on county history, current issues, and differences between the cities and the unincorporated areas in Washington

Joining us this week is Deanna Palm, President of the Hillsboro Chamber. Deanna has been with Hillsboro Chamber for over 18 years. And since we last spoke, she is also president of Beaverton’s Chamber. We are also joined by Mark Spielberg, incoming Chair of the Beaverton Chamber Board . Our conversation focuses on the pandemic impact upon County businesses and a look at reopening issues. We’ll see what the future holds.

                 

Our guest this week is Washington County’s newest County Commissioner-Nafisa Fai. Commissioner Fai was elected to represent district one which includes Beaverton, Aloha, Cooper Mountain, and Reedville last November. Nafisa has made history as the first Black and first Muslim person to be elected to the Washington County Commission.

As a twenty-two year resident of Oregon, Nafisa has spent the majority of her career working in public health. She also owns a small business based in Beaverton. Through her business, she helps local nonprofit and public and private sector clients grow and expand for their future.

We get to meet the commissioner and discuss our current battle against COVID, policing issues, racism and more.

This interview is from November, 2020.

For the past 25 years, Steve Callaway has worked to make a difference for the people of Hillsboro. He has served the community as an elementary school principal, Hillsboro School District Communications Director, Planning Commissioner, City Council President, and as the first Hillsboro Mayor elected President of the Oregon Mayors Association.

This candid conversation about Hillsboro, values, and current issues reveals much about the Mayor, and his hopes and plans for the City.

Our guest today Is Oregon’s senior US Senator - Senator Ron Wyden. Senator Wyden has served Oregonians, and the nation in the Senate since 1996 and, in addition to various Committee memberships, he serves as the Chair of the Senate Finance Committee.

Wyden previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Oregon's 3rd Congressional District from 1981 to 1996.

Our discussion covers a wide range of topics including the pandemic, the economy, racial equity and more!