Evergreen Welcomes Three New Trustees

The Evergreen State College is pleased to announce the addition of three new members to its board of trustees. Long-time former state Sen. Karen Fraser, Washington State Patrol Capt. Monica Alexander and student trustee Kathleena Ly were appointed by Gov. Jay Inslee and joined the board this year.

Fraser, a Washingtonian who has spent 43 years in elected office, including 24 years as a state senator and four years as a state representative, has a long history of distinguished service and achievement and a deep connection to Evergreen since the 1970s. She has also taught at Evergreen in an adjunct faculty role.

“As a legislator,” said Fraser “for 28 years, I was fully engaged in looking out for the needs of Evergreen, but what’s new for me is being on the administrative side of the college. I’ll be seeing Evergreen from a different perspective.”

Alexander, a Tacoma resident, believes she is in the right place as a new member of the board, as a 22-year veteran of public service and an Evergreen Tacoma alumna of class ’13. “Evergreen is so important. It was a life-changing experience for me,” said Alexander. “When I first walked into Evergreen as a student, I was captured. It gave me more passion about learning and serving.

“I want to serve and I never want to stop learning. For Gov. Inslee to trust me to be a voice in this environment is really exciting.”

She is also committed to mentoring women and encouraging more to attend college. Alexander believes her new appointment will help her achieve that goal as well as assisting the college in other ways.

Student trustee Kathleena Ly, a senior at Evergreen studying public health, will bring the voice of the student body to the board.

“I was so honored to be given the opportunity from Gov. Inslee to serve the students and represent the college,” commented Ly.

Ly hopes to be a unifying voice representing Evergreen’s Tacoma and Olympia campuses. She is a Geoduck volleyball player who wants to raise the visibility of athletics and garner more engagement from the student body.

“We are honored to have three such outstanding additions to the board of trustees,” said Evergreen President George Bridges. “They will provide sound leadership as the college invests in advancing the success of our students.”

The Evergreen Board of Trustees is an eight-member governing board that delegates authority to President Bridges and provides strategic leadership in education, development and planning.